A new method for venom extraction from venomous fish, green scat

Scatophagus argus argus (Green Scat) is a pretty aquarium fish. Its hard spines are venomous and can cause painful injury. In this study 60 specimens of Green Scat were collected periodically from coastal waters of Boushehr (south of Iran) from May 2011 to April 2012. Anatomical features of venomous spines were investigated. Scat venom was extracted from the spines in a new manner for keeping the specimens alive. The nature of venom was tested by SDS-PAGE. Ethical issues and animal welfare principles such as rapid and instantaneous anesthetizing, post operation disinfection and fast recovery of the specimens was practiced in order to minimize the complications. This method enhanced the purity and quantity of venom as demonstrated by 12 separated proteins in electrophoresis. New ethical issues were developed to surviving the specimens and prolong viability as well.

Fish muscle structural proteins

Based on the differences in their physico-chemical properties proteins are broadly categorised as sarcoplasmic or fibrillar. The properties are important in fish technology. The authors review some of these physico-chemical properties of the proteins which have distinguished themselves as 'structural' or 'textural' proteins. As denaturation in these proteins caused by a variety of factors manifests itself in terms in the quality attributes of the product, relevant mechanisms have been particularly highlighted.

Electrophoretic characteristics of oil sardine (Sardinella longiceps) and mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) eye lens proteins

Electrophoresis of eye lens proteins of oil sardine and mackerel showed separation of proteins into three and four components, indicating the heterogeneous nature of the population.

Electrophoretic studies on serum proteins of oil sardine (Sardinella longiceps) and mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta)

Oil sardine blood tests against human typing sera indicated A-positive, A-negative and B-negative. The blood of mackerel is antigenically negative both for A and B. Electrophoretic studies on serum proteins revealed the existence of genetica1ly different groups of oil sardine and mackerel on the south-west coast of India.

Effect of oxidation of dietary fish lipids on the quality of proteins in diet

The paper reports results of a study on the effect of oxidised fish oil in the diet on the quality of dietary fish proteins. With increased oxidation of oil, digestibility and utilization of the protein registered a decrease. Oxidation of fish oil beyond a stage was found to affect the intake of diet itself and rats lost weight rapidly.

Growth and survival of Penaeus monodon postlarvae fed shrimp head meal and fish meal as primary animal source of protein

Although shrimp head meal alone does not provide for good growth and survival, fish meal can provide high survival rate. The addition of shrimp head improves this diet. It is suggested that cholesterol present in shrimp could have caused this difference. Composition of the test diets is tabulated, as are proximate chemical analysis of the diets, and the mean initial weights, final weights, weight gains, survival rate, feed consumed, protein consumed, of Penaeus monodon postlarvae, feed conversion and protein efficiency ratio.

Influence of dietary proteins on cholesterol levels in albino rats

Six groups of albino rats were fed identical diets, differing in their protein sources for sixty days. The protein sources used were fat free casein, defatted groundnut cake, and defatted fish powders from three species of fishes, namely, the fresh water fish Labeo rohita, the marine fishes, Rastrelliger kanagurta and Otolithus argenteus and marine prawns, Parapenaeopsis stylifera. After sixty days, the levels of cholesterol in the serum, liver and heart of the rats were estimated. The casein group recorded the highest level of cholesterol. Compared to casein, the groundnut protein was distinctly hypocholesterolemic. The fish proteins had a still greater cholesterol lowering ability. Of the proteins used in this study, the proteins of prawns had the maximum hypocholesterolemic effect. An attempt is made to correlate the behaviour of the proteins in this respect, with their respective amino acid compositions.

Report of the regional workshop in transboundary aquatic animal health issues, Bangkok, Thailand, 12-13 January, 2012

This workshop was implemented as part of the Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA). The main focus was on the shrimp and fish aquaculture sectors and addressed issues such as aquatic animal health and transfers of aquatic animals and plants.

Comparison of physicochemical properties of muscle proteins in cultured and wild prawns (Penaeus (Fenneropenaeus) orientalis Kishinouye, 1918)

Protein physicochemical properties in cultured and wild prawns (Penaeus (F.) orientalis Kishinouye, 1918) were studied and compared. Protein fractions were separated into water-soluble, salt-soluble, alkali-soluble, and stroma. The results showed that salt- and alkali-soluble proteins were slightly higher in wild prawns and water-soluble proteins were higher in cultured prawns. There were only slight differences in Ca super(2+)-ATPase, MG super(2+)-ATPase, and ATP sensitivities. The textural values of wild prawns were significantly higher than the cultured ones.

Extraction, purification and analysis of conotoxin of Conus textile captured from Persian Gulf and the investigation of analgesic effects of conotoxins in an animal model

Identification of venomous species of Persian Gulf cone snails and characterization of venom composition and their features is so important from the point of medical importance. Marine cone snails from the genus Conus are estimated to consist of up to 700 species. The venom of cone snails has yielded a rich source of novel neuroactive peptides or conotoxins. The present study was aimed to study the analgesic effect of Persian Gulf Conus textile and its comparison with morphine in mouse model. The specimens of Conus textile were collected of Larak Island from depth of 7 m. The collected samples were transferred to laboratory alive and were stored at -700 c. he veno s ducts were separated and ho ogenized with deionized water he ixture centrifuged at rp for inutes upernatant was considered as extracted veno and stored at - C after lyophylization. The protein profile of venom determined by using SDS-PAGE and HPLC used to investigate the extracted venom and to evaluate the analgesic activity, formalin test was carried out. SDS-PAGE indicated several bands ranged between 6 and 250 kDa. Chromatogram of the venom demonstrated more than 44 large and small fractions. The amount of 10 ng of Conus crude venom and analgesic peptide showed the best anti-pain activity in formalin test. No death observed up to 100 mg/kg, which is 250,000 times higher than the effective dose.Venom characterization of Persian Gulf Conus textile may be of medical importance and potential for new pharmaceutical drugs as well.

Comparative electrophoretic patterns of lactase dehydrogenase and malate dehydrogenase in five Lake Victoria cichlid species

Biochemical techniques designed to compare species on the basis of protein differences were started by NUTTALL (1904) who used immunological methods to compare the serum of humans with that of other primates. Since then more refined techniques have led to better results at the protein level in taxonomy, The analyses of proteins are considered to be the simplest indirect approach to understanding the structure and function of the genetic material, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). Interest in these analyses arises because of the close relationship between protein structure and gene structure. Thus by comparing the properties of homologous proteins from different taxa one is in essence comparins their genes (GORMAN er al., 1971). It is now an established fact that genetic information coded in molecules of DNA is translated through a series of reactions in the structure of proteins which form the principal morphological units of the animal body at the molecular level of organization (SIBLEY, 1952). A convenient method of comparing molecular differences between species is to measure the electrophoretic mobility of proteins in a starch gel medium (ASPINWALL and TSUYUKI, 1968) or acrylamide gel (RAYMOND and WEINTRAUB, 1959; BOUCK and BALL, 1968). Proteins with enzymatic properties can be compared on the basis of catalytic activity in the presence or absence of inhibitors (KAPLAN et al., 1959); BAILEY et al., t 1970). A combination of gel electrophoresis and histochemical enzyme detection techniques (HUNTER and MARKERT, 1957) makes it possible to combine electrophoretic mobility anti catalytic activity comparison, Enzyme patterns exhibited in starch gel or acrylamide gel have been used to classify different species. BOUCK and BALL (1968)working with lactate dehydrogenase in species of Trout found that each Trout species had LDH pattern characterbtic of that species. ASPINIWALL and TSUYUKI (1968) used muscle protein electrophoretic patterns to identify hybrid fishes. TSUYUKI and ROBERTS (1963) and TSUYUKI et al. (1964-65) found that myogen protein patterns in fishes were species specific. The myogen patterns within one family were remarkably parallel with the existing morphometric classification and these patterns constituted a single criterion by which the fishes could be identified. The fish used in these investigations were collected from shallow waters (10 metres) of Lake Victoria in two areas, Jinja and Kisumu, using gillnets and beach-seines. The study included ten specimens of each of the following specIes: (l) Haplochromis michaeli (2) Haploehromis obems (3) Astatoreochromis ulluaudi (4) Tilapia zillii and (5) Tilapia nilotica.