Mucosal Health in Aquaculture Organisms

A special issue of Fishes (ISSN 2410-3888).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2018) | Viewed by 43683

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Nofima, Norwegian Institute of Food, Fisheries and Aquaculture Research, 1430 Ås, Norway
Interests: fish mucosal immunology; fish health and welfare; sustainable aquaculture; peripheral clocks; interplay between immunity and circadian rhythm; mucosal health; oxidative stress
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fish are highly susceptible to a plethora of threats because of their intimate contact with the aquatic environment. The mucosal barriers, such as the skin, gill, and gut, provide the first line of defense against these threats. The basic functions of fish mucosa have been unraveled to a substantial extent in the last two decades. Even though we have made significant strides, there are a number of features yet to be explored. The accessibility and the resolution of new technologies have contributed significantly to the advancement in our understanding of fish mucosa. Intense research has been likewise devoted to improving the functions of the mucosal barriers. Mucosal surfaces are more accessible, at least compared with other immune-related organs such as the spleen and kidney, hence, direct modulation of their functions can be performed by immersion and/or dietary treatments. The majority of the recent studies deal with nutritional manipulations to promote superior mucosal health. In particular, numerous functional diets have been tested in several fish species. It has been shown that a good mucosal health has a beneficial impact on the status of organismal health. This Special Issue focuses on the current and future perspectives on the fundamental and applied aspects of mucosal health in farmed fish. We are pleased to accept manuscripts with novel finding and in-depth understanding of the fish mucosa and on how different factors, such as nutrition, diseases, environment, treatment and handling, regulate their functions.

Dr. Carlo Lazado
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • aquaculture
  • fish health
  • gills
  • gut
  • mucosal immunity
  • nutrition
  • skin

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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10 pages, 258 KiB  
Communication
Skin Mucus Fatty Acid Composition of Gilthead Sea Bream (Sparus Aurata): A Descriptive Study in Fish Fed Low and High Fish Meal Diets
by Silvia Torrecillas, Daniel Montero, David Domínguez, Lidia Robaina and Marisol Izquierdo
Fishes 2019, 4(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes4010015 - 27 Feb 2019
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4500
Abstract
Terrestrial protein and lipid sources are commonly used as substitutes for marine fishery-derived raw ingredients in fish diets. However, their use is related with several side-effects on marine fish performance, health, or disease resistance. Physical barriers of the skin, gills, and gut constitute [...] Read more.
Terrestrial protein and lipid sources are commonly used as substitutes for marine fishery-derived raw ingredients in fish diets. However, their use is related with several side-effects on marine fish performance, health, or disease resistance. Physical barriers of the skin, gills, and gut constitute the primary defense mechanism of fish. Skin mucus mucosal mucins, water, proteins, ions, and lipids determine the physical, chemical, and protective characteristics of skin mucus. Very little is known about the influence of diet composition on fish skin mucus fatty acid profile. Gilthead sea bream skin mucus contained 10% of total lipids (TL), which consisted of 50–60% neutral (NL) and 40–50% polar lipids (PL) fractions. Σn−3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) deposition was preferential in the NL fraction, whereas Σn−6LC-PUFA accumulation was similar in both lipid classes. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6n−3) was the main LC-PUFA stored in skin mucus (14% TL) in relation to eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20:5n−3) (2–3% TL) and arachidonic acid (ARA; 20:4n−6) (2% TL). This study denotes the importance of DHA as component of skin mucus lipids compared to other essential fatty acids, such as EPA and ARA, as well as importance of maintaining an adequate Σn−3/ Σn−6 ratio, regardless of dietary intake. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mucosal Health in Aquaculture Organisms)
14 pages, 2974 KiB  
Article
Workflow for the Targeted and Untargeted Detection of Small Metabolites in Fish Skin Mucus
by Lada Ivanova, Haitham Tartor, Søren Grove, Anja B. Kristoffersen and Silvio Uhlig
Fishes 2018, 3(2), 21; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes3020021 - 7 Jun 2018
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 5951
Abstract
The skin mucus of fish is in permanent contact with the aquatic environment. Data from the analysis of the chemical composition of skin mucus could potentially be used for monitoring the health status of the fish. Knowledge about mucus composition or change in [...] Read more.
The skin mucus of fish is in permanent contact with the aquatic environment. Data from the analysis of the chemical composition of skin mucus could potentially be used for monitoring the health status of the fish. Knowledge about mucus composition or change in composition over time could also contribute to understanding the aetiology of certain diseases. The objective of the present study was the development of a workflow for non-invasive sampling of skin mucus from farmed salmon (Salmo salar) for the targeted and untargeted detection of small metabolites. Skin mucus was either scraped off, wiped off using medical wipes, or the mucus’ water phase was absorbed using the same type of medical wipes that was used for the wiping method. Following a simple filtration step, the obtained mucus samples were subjected to hydrophilic interaction chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry. Post-acquisition processing included the targeted analysis of 86 small metabolites, of which up to 60 were detected in absorbed mucus. Untargeted analysis of the mucus samples from equally treated salmon revealed that the total variation of the metabolome was lowest in absorbed mucus and highest in the scraped mucus. Thus, future studies including small-molecule metabolomics of skin mucus in fish would benefit from a sampling regime employing absorption of the water phase in order to minimize the bias related to the sampling step. Furthermore, the absorption method is also a less invasive approach allowing for repetitive sampling within short time intervals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mucosal Health in Aquaculture Organisms)
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Review

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10 pages, 581 KiB  
Review
Mucosal Barrier Functions of Fish under Changing Environmental Conditions
by Nikko Alvin R. Cabillon and Carlo C. Lazado
Fishes 2019, 4(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes4010002 - 10 Jan 2019
Cited by 106 | Viewed by 12787
Abstract
The skin, gills, and gut are the most extensively studied mucosal organs in fish. These mucosal structures provide the intimate interface between the internal and external milieus and serve as the indispensable first line of defense. They have highly diverse physiological functions. Their [...] Read more.
The skin, gills, and gut are the most extensively studied mucosal organs in fish. These mucosal structures provide the intimate interface between the internal and external milieus and serve as the indispensable first line of defense. They have highly diverse physiological functions. Their role in defense can be highlighted in three shared similarities: their microanatomical structures that serve as the physical barrier and hold the immune cells and the effector molecules; the mucus layer, also a physical barrier, contains an array of potent bioactive molecules; and the resident microbiota. Mucosal surfaces are responsive and plastic to the different changes in the aquatic environment. The direct interaction of the mucosa with the environment offers some important information on both the physiological status of the host and the conditions of the aquatic environment. Increasing attention has been directed to these features in the last year, particularly on how to improve the overall health of the fish through manipulation of mucosal functions and on how the changes in the mucosa, in response to varying environmental factors, can be harnessed to improve husbandry. In this short review, we highlight the current knowledge on how mucosal surfaces respond to various environmental factors relevant to aquaculture and how they may be exploited in fostering sustainable fish farming practices, especially in controlled aquaculture environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mucosal Health in Aquaculture Organisms)
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19 pages, 297 KiB  
Review
Biological and Ecological Roles of External Fish Mucus: A Review
by Miriam Reverter, Nathalie Tapissier-Bontemps, David Lecchini, Bernard Banaigs and Pierre Sasal
Fishes 2018, 3(4), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes3040041 - 9 Oct 2018
Cited by 170 | Viewed by 19644
Abstract
Fish mucus layers are the main surface of exchange between fish and the environment, and they possess important biological and ecological functions. Fish mucus research is increasing rapidly, along with the development of high-throughput techniques, which allow the simultaneous study of numerous genes [...] Read more.
Fish mucus layers are the main surface of exchange between fish and the environment, and they possess important biological and ecological functions. Fish mucus research is increasing rapidly, along with the development of high-throughput techniques, which allow the simultaneous study of numerous genes and molecules, enabling a deeper understanding of the fish mucus composition and its functions. Fish mucus plays a major role against fish infections, and research has mostly focused on the study of fish mucus bioactive molecules (e.g., antimicrobial peptides and immune-related molecules) and associated microbiota due to their potential in aquaculture and human medicine. However, external fish mucus surfaces also play important roles in social relationships between conspecifics (fish shoaling, spawning synchronisation, suitable habitat finding, or alarm signals) and in interspecific interactions such as prey-predator relationships, parasite–host interactions, and symbiosis. This article reviews the biological and ecological roles of external (gills and skin) fish mucus, discussing its importance in fish protection against pathogens and in intra and interspecific interactions. We also discuss the advances that “omics” sciences are bringing into the fish mucus research and their importance in studying the fish mucus composition and functions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mucosal Health in Aquaculture Organisms)
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