Enzymatic digestive activity in Mytilus chilensis (Hupé 1854) in response to food regimes and past feeding history

Abstract

Digestive enzyme activities (amylase, cellulase, laminarinase and protease) were analysed in mussels (Mytilus chilensis) from intertidal and subtidal habitats in Yaldad Bay, Chiloé, Chile. In order to analyse the effects of the past-feeding history (origin) and new nutritional conditions (habitat) on these enzymatic activities, a cross-over transplant was carried out and the analysis performed after a 7-day acclimation period. Crystalline styles showed higher carbohydrase and lower protease activities than digestive glands, with the highest differences recorded for subtidal mussels. Cellulase is the enzyme with the highest activity in both the digestive gland and crystalline style in all the experimental conditions. Intertidal mussels transplanted to a subtidal habitat showed enzyme resources significantly higher than in their original habitat. In the inverse case, mussels transferred from an original subtidal habitat to an intertidal one, a significant decrease in carbohydrase and protease activities was observed. The "past feeding history' is involved in the specific and total carbohydrase and protease activities, with a highly significant effect on amylase and cellulase activities in both the crystalline style and the digestive gland. Laminarinase activity can be interpreted considering the habitat (trophic regime), either individually or interacting with mussels' origin, in relation with the feeding periods. The results establish that in M. chilensis, an investment in enzyme resources is one of the mechanisms employed to optimise the acclimated response in terms of energy gains when variations in the food regime occur.

Differences in the digestive biochemistry between the intertidal clam, Ruditapes decussatus, and the subtidal clam, Venerupis pullastra

“…This should indicate the existence of two types of proteases in this latter species, each one being fully functional at a different pH and probably having a complementary effect. A similar result, showing a broad spectrum of pH with distinct maxima at pH 3 and 10, has been found in other molluscs such as Haliotis (Edwards and Condon 2001). The temperature profiles of protease activity showed clear differences between organs, with maxima at 25°C in CS and 40-50°C in DG, but no significant differences between the two species (Fig.…”

“…Values in each species not sharing a common letter are significantly different with P \ 0.05 Aquacult Int (2009) 17:273-282 279 greater extent to the total enzymatic activity in each specimen. Protease activity in most molluscs is lower than in other invertebrates such as worms, arthropods, and echinodermata (Edwards and Condon 2001), this being related to the relative low importance that protein represents in the diet of most species in the group. Nevertheless, proteases are important components in the digestive biochemistry of filtering bivalves, since they have a role in the hydrolysis of cell contents of the ingested phytoplankton.…”

Comparison in Growth, Feeding, and Metabolism Between a Fast-Growing Selective Strain and a Cultured Population of Pearl Oyster (Pinctada fucata martensii)

“…The types and activities of enzymes were different from those reported by Wang et al (2010), for example, the value of amylase activity was comparatively lower than in their studies. The difference in the type and level of digestive enzymatic activity may be due to differences in diet (Fernández-Reiriz et al, 2001;Labarta et al, 2002;Alberto et al, 2020). In the experiment, we found no cellulase activity in any of the test tubes.…”

Flexibility of Physiological Traits Underlying Inter-Individual Growth Differences in Intertidal and Subtidal Mussels Mytilusgalloprovincialis

“…The fact that physiological and biometric differences associated with the origin are persistent in transplant experiments has been attributed to the existence of an ‘ecological memory’ depending on the natural feeding conditions experienced by individuals previous to any experiment [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 33 , 34 ]. However, the fact that some physiological and morphological differences persist after a long period of maintenance in mussels of both origins suggests that part of the origin-related differences must owe to genotypic factors that influence the physiological rates [ 3 , 5 , 26 ].…”