• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.20 no.3
• /
• pp.167-172
• /
• 2008

The Korean bitterling, Acheilognathus signifer (Osteichthyes Cyprinidae), is an endemic and endangered species in Korea. During developmental stages, a small number of oculocutaneous albinism (with colorless body and eyeballs) were observed in the species. In order to investigate histological differences between normal and albinic bitterling, the dorsal skin and choroid-retina of the eyes were taken. The skin and eyes of normal and albino bitterling were similar in structure except for the presence or density of pigment cells. In normal bitterling, the epidermal melanocytes and dermal melanophores were abundantly developed in both the skin and epidermis of the eyes. But in the albino, the dorsal skin had few melanins, and the pigment cells over the choroid-retina pigment epithelium and iris of the eye were very small.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.18 no.3
• /
• pp.266-272
• /
• 2006

The egg development and early life history of Korean endemic bitterling Rhodeus pseudosericeus were observed under the controlled water temperature, $17.0{\pm}0.5^{\circ}C$. Fertilized eggs are opaque yellow in color, measuring 2.9~3.1 mm in length and 1.6~1.9 mm in breadth. The eggs of this species began to hatch about seventy hours after insemination and the range of total length of larvae were 3.2~3.4 mm. The larvae reached at the heterotrophic stage about twenty-five days after hatching. R. pseudosericeus had a pair of wing-shaped yolk projection during the prelarval stage that is a common character of the genus Rhodeus.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.18 no.3
• /
• pp.170-177
• /
• 2006

Morphology and distribution of the minute tubercles projected on the skin surface of larvae with its development was observed in the Korean bitterling, Acheilognathus koreensis, known as an endemic freshwater fish. The epidermis of the larvae consisted of a thin single layer, having smaller basophilic flat or round-flattened basal cells. In between the single cell layer, two or three layers were added and they consisted mainly of large epidermal cells just above basal cells. These large unicellular epidermal cells were mainly scale-shaped and rarely cone-shaped, and do not give any histochemical tests for mucosubstances. They were present in anterior region and most region of yolk sac. Whereas, vestigial epidermal cells were distributed in the body region and the caudal fin-fold region. These two kinds of epidermal cells, called minute tubercles, increased in number and height from Just to 8 days after hatching, but as the larvae develop gradually, they became to reduce. At 31days after hatching of free swimming stage and absolute absorption stage of the yolk sac, the minute tubercles did not exist on the whole skin of the larvae.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.26 no.1
• /
• pp.17-24
• /
• 2014

The egg development and early life history of Acheilognathus majusculus which is Korean endemic species from Yeong river were observed under the controlled water temperature, $18.0{\pm}1.0^{\circ}C$. Fertilized eggs are opaque yellow in color and round oval shaped measuring 2.12 (2.08~2.18) mm in length and 1.86 (1.80~1.98) mm in breadth. The number of eggs averaged 72 (40~112) per an oviposition. The eggs of this species began to hatch about forty three hours after insemination and the total length of larvae was 4.23 mm mean. S form moving of larvae were not observed during larval development. The larvae reached at the heterotrophic stage about twenty-five days after hatching. It is estimated that the larvae was comming out from freshwater bivalve since that time in nature. A. majusculus was grew up to be adult stage enough which can be join to new production for three hundred days after hatching with over 67.8 mm in total length.

• Animal cells and systems
• /
• v.12 no.4
• /
• pp.297-304
• /
• 2008

Morphology and distribution of the minute tubercles projected on the skin surface of larvae with its development were observed in the Korean bitterling, Acheilognathus somjinensis. The minute tubercles appeared to be two distinct morphologies, hemispheric or scaly and vestigial structures. Just after hatching, the epidermis of the larvae consists of a thin single cell layer having smaller basophilic flat or round-flattened basal cells. As the larvae grow, the epidermis contains more small flat cells and large epidermal cells which are round and hemispheric, or scaleshaped, called minute tubercles. They are distributed over the anterior part and most part of yolk sac, posterior region of yolk sac and the body region. Vestigial epidermal cells, another minute tubercle, occur only in the caudal fin-fold region, which they are shrunken and flattened, causing the cell boundary to be unclear. They increase in number and height from just to 5 days after hatching, but they become reduced as the larvae develop gradually. The required time for those disappearance was different each by regional body: at day 20 after hatching in the anteriormost part of yolk sac, and day 11 after hatching in the posterior part of yolk sac and the body, and day 21 after hatching in two regions such most part of the yolk sac and the caudal finfold regions.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.23 no.1
• /
• pp.10-20
• /
• 2011

Genetic determinant for metallothionein (MT), a cysteine-rich protein playing essential roles in metal detoxification and homeostasis, was characterized in the Korean bitterling (Acheilognathus signifer, Cyprinidae), an endemic fish species. The full-length A. signifer MT (AsMT) cDNA (551 bp) is composed of a single open-reading frame (ORF) to encode a polypeptide of 60 amino acids containing 20 cysteine residues whose positions are conserved in most cypriniform MTs. At the genomic level, the AsMT (2,593 bp spanning the 5'-flanking region to the 3'-untranslated region) represented a conserved tripartite (three exons interrupted by two introns) structure with AT-rich introns. The upstream regulatory region (-1,914 bp from the ATG initiation codon) of AsMT displayed various sites and motifs for transcription factors involved in the metal-mediated regulation and stress/immune responses. The AsMT transcript was ubiquitously detected in various organs with variable expression levels, where the ovary and intestine showed the highest expression, while the heart and skeletal muscle represented the lowest level. During an exposure to copper (immersion in $0.5\;{\mu}M$ Cu for 48 h), the levels of AsMT transcripts were significantly elevated in the liver (more than 3.5-fold), moderately in the gill, kidney, and spleen (ranging from 1.5- to 2.5-fold), and barely in the brain and intestine. Results of this study could form a useful basis to explore the metal-related stress physiology of this endangered fish species.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
• /
• v.26 no.2
• /
• pp.83-88
• /
• 2014

An endemic Korean bitterling, Acheilognathus signifer, known as using freshwater mussels for its spawning activity, much prefers Lamprotula leai in Dalcheon stream (Goesan population) and Unio douglasiae sinuolatus in Gadaecheon (Danyang population) stream, Korea. The spawning pattern between two mussels and one bitterling was carried out in two populations from April to June, 2011 and 2013. L. leai in the Goesan population was bigger shell length and have more eggs, larvae or both with A. signifer than those of U. d. sinuolatus in the Danyang population. Also, A. signifer in the Goesan population appeared to have a longer ovipositor and lay ripen eggs more than those of A. signifer in the Danyang population. Glochidium, a larval stage, of some L. leai in the Goesan population was incubated in all the demibranch, whereas for all of U. d. sinuolatus in the Danyang population was found in the outer demibranch only. For L. leai in the Goesan population, the eggs, larvae or both of A. signifer were much more in the non-breeding mussels (giving no glochidium) than the breeding mussels having the glochidium. For U. d. sinuolatus in the Danyang population, in contrast, the non-breeding mussels have fewer eggs, larvae or both less than the breeding one.