Fish pigmentation and coloration: Molecular mechanisms and aquaculture perspectives

Abstract

Pigmentation is one of the most diverse characters in vertebrates, with a broad variety of colour phenotypes and colour patterns found in different species, populations and individuals. 1 The diversity and fascinating skin colours and pigment patterns are observed in fish (Figure 1), which coloration widely distributed in the hypodermis of the body as well as the epidermis of scales and fins. 2,3 According to the FAO, global fish production in 2018 was projected to be around 179 million tonnes, with a total first-sale value estimated at USD 401 billion, of which 82 million tonnes from aquaculture and the rest from capture production, and approximately 88 per cent of total fish production was used for direct human consumption, with the remaining 12 per cent going to non-food purposes such as fish oil, fishmeal and ornamental fish. 4 Body colour is an interesting economic feature in aquatic animals, for example fish and shellfish, and the global exports of ornamental fish increased from USD 177.7 million in 2000 to a peak of USD 347.5 million in 2014. 5 The global market for ornamental fish is currently competitive, with a relatively high demand for aquarium fish around the world, and more than

Evaluation of Chlorogenic Acid Supplementation in Koi (Cyprinus carpio) Diet: Growth Performance, Body Color, Antioxidant Activity, Serum Biochemical Parameters, and Immune Response

“…The reasons might be as follows to explain CGA diets improve body pigmentation of koi in this study. Firstly, it may be related to the fact that CGA, as an antioxidant, reduces the consumption of pigments (carotenoids and pteridines pigments) by free radicals and increases the deposition of pigments in body [49,50]. Besides, it is also possible that CGA promotes the normal migration, differentiation, and development of xanthophore and erythrophore to increase the number of mature pigment cells by improving the antioxidant effect of liver [49,50].…”

Transcriptome analysis of skin color variation during and after overwintering of Malaysian red tilapia

“…Therefore, skin colors might play a vital role in quality parameters in certain species. Previous studies have investigated that skin color was affected by many factors, such as genetics, nutrition, physiology and environmental factors (Jiang et al, 2014;Luo et al, 2021). Water temperature is a major environmental factor for metabolism, development and growth of animals (Pavlidis et al, 2008).…”

Self-Assembly of Twisted Monolayer Cholesteric Films via Surface Tension Local Anisotropy: Implications for Multicolor Optical Tags

“…Patterned armor in nature. Animals control the shape, size, color and reflectivity of their bodies [1][2][3][4][5] . Iridescent patterns may be encountered in the armor of many insects [6][7][8][9] (Figure 1a) and fishes [10][11][12][13] (Figure 1b) with a twisted, cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) organization of chitin or collagen (Figure 1c).…”

“…Animals control the shape, size, color, and reflectivity of their bodies. − Iridescent patterns may be encountered in the armor of many insects − (Figure a) and fishes − (Figure b) with a twisted, cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) organization of chitin or collagen (Figure c). Their cuticles or scales include patterns such as stripes, spots, pixels, and many other shapes.…”