title: Talking to the dead: using Post-mortem data in the assessment of stress in tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) (Péron and Lesueur, 1822).
abstract: Sharks are very sensitive to stress and prone to a high mortality rate after capture. Since approximately 50 million of sharks are caught as bycatch every year, and current recommendations to reduce the impact of commercial fishing strongly support immediate release, it is imperative to better understand post-release mortality caused by the stress of capture and handling. Blood samples allow the assessment of stress levels which are valuable tools to reduce mortality in commercial, recreational and scientific fishing, being essential for the improvement in those conservation measures. Biochemical analyses are widely used for sharks as stress indicators, with secondary plasma parameters (lactate, glucose and ions) being the most often employed assays. However, it is virtually impossible to determine baseline plasma parameters in free-ranging sharks, since blood withdrawal involves animal capture and restrain, which are stressful procedures. This study aims at analyzing secondary parameters of five healthy tiger sharks captured with circular hooks and handlines in Fernando de Noronha (Northeastern Brazil) and comparing them with secondary parameters of three dead tiger sharks caught off Recife (also Northeastern Brazil). The results showed that the analysis of some plasma constituents in dead animals may be an efficient tool to assess stress and lethality. However, traditional parameters such as glucose and calcium, need to be used with caution. The results also demonstrated the extreme importance of urea and phosphorus for assessing stress response and mortality in tiger sharks, both parameters frequently neglected and of utmost importance for shark's homeostasis.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Fisiologia, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR) - Centro Politécnico, Curitiba, PR, CEP 81531-990, Brazil. n.wosnick@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Natascha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wosnick
authors.affiliation: Centro de Estudos do Mar, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Pontal do Paraná, PR, CEP 83255976, Brazil.
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bornatowski
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Tecnologia Pesqueira, Departamento de Pesca e Aquicultura, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Av. Dom Manoel de Medeiros s/n, Dois Irmãos, Recife, CEP 52171900, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carolina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ferraz
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Tecnologia Pesqueira, Departamento de Pesca e Aquicultura, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Av. Dom Manoel de Medeiros s/n, Dois Irmãos, Recife, CEP 52171900, Brazil.
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Afonso
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Metabolismo e Reprodução de Organismos Aquáticos, Departamento de Fisiologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, travessa 14, 321, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Bianca
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sousa Rangel
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Tecnologia Pesqueira, Departamento de Pesca e Aquicultura, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Av. Dom Manoel de Medeiros s/n, Dois Irmãos, Recife, CEP 52171900, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fábio Hissa Vieira
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Hazin
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Fisiologia, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR) - Centro Politécnico, Curitiba, PR, CEP 81531-990, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carolina Arruda
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Freire
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001344:Autopsy; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D001798:Blood Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D002712:Chlorides / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D029941:Fish Proteins / Q000097:blood; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008670:Metals / Q000097:blood; D009994:Osmolar Concentration; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000097:blood; D012754:Sharks / Q000097:blood*; D013312:Stress, Physiological; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000097:blood*; D014508:Urea / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D001798:Blood Proteins; D002712:Chlorides; D029941:Fish Proteins; D008670:Metals; D010758:Phosphorus; D019344:Lactic Acid; D014508:Urea
keywords: Elasmobranch; Post-release recovery; Shark; Stress physiology