title: Stress and Humoral Innate Immune Response of Gilthead Seabream Sparus aurata Cultured in Sea Cages.
abstract: Innate and acquired immune responses of Gilthead Seabream Sparus aurata was studied under normal culture and short-term stressful conditions for 18 months in offshore sea cages in Alghero Bay, Italy. Every 45 d, 50 fish were sampled and divided into two groups: fish in the first group (normal culture conditions) were bled after harvesting; fish in the second group were put into a tank under stressful conditions (crowding and confinement) and bled after 2 h. Innate humoral immunity, such as complement-like, hemagglutination, and lysozyme activities, was determined in the sera of both groups. Pathogen challenge was not performed, but the specific humoral immune response was assessed against the most common pathogens affecting cultured fish in Sardinia. Stressed fish, compared with the control, showed a lower lysozyme activity against Vibrio (Listonella) anguillarum, which was not clearly correlated with temperatures. Complement-like activity differed between the first and second half of the study and, at the end of the trial, a slightly higher activity was recorded in the controls than in the stressed fish. Hemagglutination activity was mainly higher in the stressed fish than in control fish. Confinement, crowding, and cold water temperature caused decreased lysozyme activity in short-term stressed Gilthead Seabream compared with those reared normally. The specific humoral immune response, against V. anguillarum, Tenacibaculum mesophilum, Enterococcus Seriolicida, and Aeromonas sobria, fluctuated during the rearing period, particularly during the first year of culture. Received October 12, 2015; accepted March 24, 2016.
authors.affiliation: a Fish Disease and Aquaculture Center, IZS of Sardinia, State Veterinary Institute , Via Parigi, 09170 Oristano , Italy.
authors.forename: Fulvio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Salati
authors.affiliation: b School of Biosciences and Veterinary Medicine , University of Camerino , Viale Circonvallazione 93/95, 62024 Matelica , Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Roncarati
authors.affiliation: a Fish Disease and Aquaculture Center, IZS of Sardinia, State Veterinary Institute , Via Parigi, 09170 Oristano , Italy.
authors.forename: Giulia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Angelucci
authors.affiliation: a Fish Disease and Aquaculture Center, IZS of Sardinia, State Veterinary Institute , Via Parigi, 09170 Oristano , Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fenza
authors.affiliation: c Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences , University of Bologna , Via del Florio 2, 40064 Ozzano dell'Emilia , Italy.
authors.forename: Adele
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meluzzi
mesh_terms: D056704:Adaptive Immunity; D000818:Animals; D017756:Aquaculture; D007113:Immunity, Innate; D007558:Italy; D021541:Sea Bream / Q000276:immunology*; D013312:Stress, Physiological