Diversity of the fatty acid composition of Artemia spp. cysts from Argentinean populations

Abstract

Nauplii of the branchiopod crustacean Artemia spp. are widely used as live food in aquaculture. Their nutritional value depends essentially on the fatty acid profile of their lipids, which can be very variable. Study of this variability (often species-and/or ecology-related) proposes interesting theoretical and applied questions. In the present study, cysts (dehydrated dormant eggs) from Argentinean Artemia spp. populations were analysed for their fatty acid profile. Most of the cyst samples analysed (n = 16) were obtained from Artemia persimilis populations, but 3 belonged to A. franciscana. Previous research indicated that A. persimilis populations are confined to inland biotopes, but in this study we report the presence of A. persimilis populations in coastal ecosystems. Cysts from all populations exhibited fatty acid profiles typical of either marine or freshwater, irrespective of the inland or coastal origin of their biotope. This study represents the first time that a significant amount of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3) was detected in A. persimilis cyst samples. We hypothesize on some factors that presumably influence the fatty acid profiles of Artemia spp. cysts: (1) food resources from different habitats, which in turn can be influenced by environmental parameters, (2) the genetic make-up of each population, and/or (3) mechanisms of selective feeding.

Growth and Survival of Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Fed Different Commercial and Laboratory Diets

“…), development of research-grade D. rerio diets is still vitally important as the nutritional quality of Artemia varies considerably with geographical strain, 22,23 rearing conditions, 24 and their nutritional history. 25,26 This high degree of nutritional variability may affect growth and other physiological parameters over the course of a feeding trial, making direct comparison to defined dry feeds difficult.…”

Hatching and nutritional quality of Artemia cysts progressively deteriorates as a function of increased exposure to hydration/dehydration cycles

“…Variations in cyst fatty acid profile are generally linked to the characteristics of the phytoplankton population as food source for the maternal population Zhukova et al 1998;Thinh et al 1999, Torrentera andDodson 2004), though also other environmental parameters, such as ambient temperature, and genetic factors may have an effect (Ruiz et al 2007(Ruiz et al , 2008Nguyen Thi Hong Van, unpublished results).…”

Genetic characterization of Argentinean Artemia species with different fatty acid profiles

“…PCR reactions were prepared in a final volume of 20 ll and were composed of 0.5 pmoles of each primer, 0.125 mM of each dNTP, 10 mM Tris-HCl (pH 8.4), 25 mM KCl, 1.5 mM MgCl 2 and 0.025 U Table 1 List of the Artemia populations studied, with their types of habitats, their respective FA (fatty acid) profiles (from Ruiz et al, 2007) …”

“…However, marine-type profiles have also been reported in inland biotopes (Navarro et al, 1993, Van Stappen et al, 2003. In order to complete the picture, recently, in the most complete survey carried out on A. persimilis, Ruiz et al (2007) have reported for the first time freshwater-type FA profiles in coastal Argentinean ecosystems. Hypotheses for the factors that could determine these and other patterns were provided in that study, including the existence of an underlying genetic component.…”