Comparative efficacy of MS-222 and benzocaine as anaesthetics under simulated transport conditions of a tropical ornamental fishPuntius filamentosus(Valenciennes)

Abstract

There is a growing commercial interest in the ¢sh, Puntius ¢lamentosus, in the ornamental ¢sh trade in India and elsewhere. The trade is, however, hampered by severe mortalities during transport of the ¢sh owing to insu⁄cient data available on the use of anaesthetics. To resolve this problem, we evaluated the e⁄cacy of two anaesthetics, MS-222 and benzocaine, in sedating P. ¢lamentosus in simulated transportation experiments and used stress response parameters such as cortisol and blood glucose levels to perform assessments. We observed that MS-222 at 40 mg L À 1 and benzocaine at 20 mg L À 1 were su⁄cient to induce sedation for 48 h. Above these concentrations, both the anaesthetics adversely a¡ected the ¢sh and resulted in mortalities. Both anaesthetics signi¢cantly lowered the blood cortisol and glucose levels compared with the unsedated controls. Importantly, the anaesthetics treatment signi¢cantly lowered the post-transport mortality in the ¢sh. The results of the study show that MS-222 and benzocaine could be used as sedatives to alleviate transport-related stress in P. ¢lamentosus to improve their post-transport survival and hence reduce economic loss.

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“…Increasing salt in this combination reduced the effective concentration Table 1. Stages of induction and recovery in fish (Coyle et al, 2004;Kucuk, 2010;King et al, 2005;Mercy et al, 2013) Induction times reduced significantly with the increases in anesthetic concentration that are compatible with previous studies (Mercy et al, 2013;Mylonas et al, 2005;Pramod et al, 2010;Pawar et al, 2011).…”

“…Lack of study is on ornamental fish. Few studies have been presented (Massee et al, 1995;Weyl et al, 1996;Pramod et al, 2010).…”

“…Because it is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and agreed with all criteria of ideal anesthetics (Munday and Wilson, 1997;Hseu et al, 1998;Weber et al, 2009;Kucuk, 2010;Pramod et al, 2010;Pawar et al, 2011).…”

Efficacy of 2-Phenoxyethanol as an Anaesthetic for Adult Redline Torpedo Fish,Sahyadria denisonii(Day 1865)

“…The longest time for recovery was observed at 600 lL −1 (145 ± 24 seconds), while the shortest time occurred at 400 lL −1 (95 ± 3 seconds) ( Table 2). Similar results have been reported in Oncorhynchus nerka [29], Rachycentron canadum [30], Hippocampus kuda [13], Dawkinsia filamentosa [31], and Puntius denisonii [17,18]. However, experiments by Mylonas et al [4] documented recovery times decreasing with increase in anaesthetic concentration of clove oil and 2-phenoxyethanol in Dicentrarchus labrax and Sparus aurata.…”

Use of tricaine methanesulfonate (MS-222) to induce anaesthesia in Puntius denisonii (Day, 1865) (Teleostei: Cypriniformes: Cyprinidae), a threatened barb of the Western Ghats, India

“…MS-222 is a benzocaine derivative that is absorbed across the gills, bio transformed in the liver and probably kidney, and cleared primarily through the gills, with additional metabolites eliminated in urine and bile (Maren et al 1968;Harms 1999). Several studies have evaluated the efficacy of MS-222 in various fish species (Roubach et al 2001;Walsh & Pease 2002;Iversen et al 2003;King et al 2005;Mylonas et al 2005;Hajek et al 2006;Pramod et al 2010;Pawar et al 2011).…”