• Journal of Life Science
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.1186-1193
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• 2008

The growth performance of pangasiid catfish (Pangasius hypophthalmus), silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) and catla (Catla catla) was evaluated in polyculture at varied combinations and stocking ratios in earthen pond for a period of 16 weeks. Combinations of pangasiid catfish, silver carp and catla with the total density of 30,000 fish per hectare were evaluated. A commercial pelleted feed containing 28% crude protein and 6% lipid was fed only to pangasiid catfish at the rate of 8% of body weight during the first six weeks, 6% during the second six weeks and 4% thereafter twice daily. The growth and feed utilization efficiency of pangasiid catfish were found similar in all treatments. The growth of silver carp was markedly decreased upon the increase of its own stocking density. The highest growth of silver carp achieved in polyculture of pangasiid catfish, silver carp and catla at 2:1:1 ratio where density of silver carp was lowest. The growth of catla was found to be affected by the presence of silver carp. The growth rate of catla markedly declined with the increase of silver carp density. The highest growth of catla obtained in polyculture of pangasiid catfish only with catla stocked at 1:1 ratio. The highest yield and economic return achieved in polyculture of pangasiid catfish, silver carp and catla at the ratio of 2:1:1 due to higher growth of silver carp and higher market value of catla. The water quality conditions in all different treatment ponds were within optimum ranges throughout the culture period and the values did not show any significant variation (p>0.05) among the treatments.

• BMB Reports
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.204-209
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• 2008

The cDNAs encoding glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were cloned and sequenced from the liver of three Chinese carps with different tolerance to hepatotoxic microcystins, phyto-planktivorous silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) and bighead carp (Aristichthys nobilis), and herbivorous grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus). Using genome walker method, a 750 bp 5'-flanking region of the silver carp GPx gene was obtained, and several potential regulatory elements were identified in the promoter region of the GPx gene. The silver carp GPx gene was widely expressed in all tissues examined. Despite phylogenetic analysis, assigning this newly described carp GPx to the group of mammalian GPx2, the carp GPx seems more similar to GPx1 from a physiological point of view. The constitutive expression pattern of the three carp liver GPx gene, shows a positive relationship with their tolerance to microcystins.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.169-176
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• 2021

Parasitic infection is among the most common problems for carp cultivation. They are also important for the principal entrance of other hazardous infections as well. This study was carried out for determining of parasitic fauna of two major carp known as silver and grass carp with the comparison of prevalence value and intensity rate of parasites among them, alongside the relationship between the biometric characteristics and host sex with the infection level. For this purpose, a total of 94 fish samples were caught randomly using a fishing net, from Guilan ponds during spring and summer of the year 2018 and transported alive to the laboratory. Upon arriving, the biometric characteristics and genus of each carp were measured individually. Specimens were then acquired from the skin, gills, and eyes of the carp and examined according to standard parasitology methods. Recovered parasites were observed under a light microscope and then fixed for identification. As the result, the occurrence and intensity in the higher length group were comparatively greater than the lower one. Also, the prevalence and intensity of total parasites in male carp were higher than in females. In this research, Dactylogyrus hypophthalmichthys and Dactylogyrus aristhichtys were observed in silver carp and Dactylogyrus lamellatus was detected in grass carp. In the paper below, we found that the host specificity varies in different species of Dactylogyrus isolated from grass carp and silver carp.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.33 no.4 s.92
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• pp.319-327
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• 2000

The feeding behavior of 1-year-old silver carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (Val.) on phytoplankton species in a shallow hypertrophic lake was studied from 22 May to 18 September, 1997. Over the experimental period, the filter-pore sizes of the fish, the total biomass of the phytoplankton and the water temperature in each enclosure changed little with time. The fish biomass in each enclosure increased with time, while their percentage of weight gain correlated negatively to the stocking density, due perhaps to competition for prey. An analysis of gut contents of silver carp showed a strong similarity between the algal communities in the foregut and the water, and was significant for the fish enclosure with a low density (p<0.05). The presence of silver carp rarely suppressed the abundance of phytoplankton such as Oscillatoria, Anabaena and Melosira even at high ingestion levels. There were weak relationships between the IU values of each phytoplankton and the selectivity of fish on them (r = 0.001, p>0.5). There was no doubt that the silver carp fed unselectively when cyanobacteria populations were high, even though the selectivity index for diatoms was slightly higher than those for cyanobacteria, green algae and cryptomonads. Improvements in methodologies are needed to clearly understand and generalize the feeding behavior of silver carp.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.15-22
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• 2008

Excessive growth of phytoplankton is a common and severe problem in intensively farmed pangasiid catfish (Pangasius hypophthalmus) culture ponds. It can lead to cyanobacterial blooms, reduced fish growth, bad-tasting fish flesh, and lower market demand. To investigate how to manage undesirable phytoplankton growth, we evaluated three stocking strategies in nine rural fishponds (0.020-0.022 ha) owned by various farmers: a pangasiid catfish mono culture (treatment 1, $T_1$), and pangasiid catfish-silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) polycultures at two stocking ratios of 1:1 (treatment 2, $T_2$) and 2:1 (treatment 3, $T_3$). The total density of all ponds was approximately 30,000 fishes/ha. Monoculture ($T_1$) resulted in significantly higher (p < 0.05) nutrient levels (nitrate and phosphate) in ponds than did polyculture ($T_2$ and $T_3$). Nutrient loads increased with culture time, resulting in increased growth of phytoplankton, including Cyanophyceae (9 genera), Chlorophyceae (15 genera), Bacillariophyceae (8 genera), and Euglenophyceae (3 genera). The introduction of silver carp as a co-species helped to regulate phytoplankton growth and to improve the water quality of pangasiid catfish culture ponds.

• BMB Reports
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.346-354
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• 2006

The full-length cDNA of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) and silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) was obtained from liver. The grass carp UCP2 cDNA was determined to be 1152 bp in length with an open reading frame that encodes 310 amino acids. Five introns (Intron 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7) in the translated region, and partial sequence of Intron 2 in the untranslated region of grass carp UCP2 gene were also obtained. Gene structure comparison between grass carp and mammalian (human and mouse) UCP2 gene shows that, the UCP2 gene structure of grass carp is much similar to that of human and mouse. Partial UCP2 cDNA sequences of bighead carp (Aristichthys nobilis) and mud carp (Cirrhinus molitorella), were further determined. Together with the common carp (Cyprinus carpio) UCP2 sequence from GenBank (AJ243486), multiple alignment result shows that the nucleotide and amino acid sequences of the UCP2 gene, were highly conserved among the five major Chinese carps that belong to four subfamilies. Using beta-actin as control, the ratio UCP2/beta-actin mRNA (%) was determined to be $149.4{\pm}15.6$ (common carp), $127.4{\pm}22.1$ (mud carp), $96.7{\pm}12.7$ (silver carp), $94.1{\pm}26.8$ (bighead carp) and $63.7{\pm}16.2$ (grass carp). The relative liver UCP2 expression of the five major Chinese carps, shows a close relationship with their food habit: benthos and detrituseating fish (common carp and mud carp) > planktivorious fish (silver carp and bighead carp) > herbivorious fish (grass carp). We suggest that liver UCP2 might be important for Chinese carps to detoxify cyanotoxins and bacteria in debris and plankton food.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.135-148
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• 2017

Pathogen introductions associated with aquatic invasive species threaten ecosystems and biodiversity worldwide. Bigheaded carps (BHC), including Silver Carp Hypophthalmichthys molitrix, Bighead Carp H. nobilis, and their hybrids, are prolific, invasive pests in central US rivers. However, little is known about pathogen effects on invading BHC or how BHC affect the disease risk profile for native fishes in receiving ecosystems. We therefore conducted, from May 2013-December 2014, a systematic pathogen survey for BHC and native fishes in the Wabash River watershed, Indiana, USA. We found Pseudomonas fluorescens, P. putida, and Salmonella enterica DNA in BHC as well as native fishes, although none of these bacteria were exclusively present in BHC. DNA from other bacterial taxa was detected only in native fishes and Common Carp Cyprinus carpio. No gastrointestinal helminths were detected in BHC, although they were common in most native fishes examined. We also conducted in vitro studies on BHC tissues (skin, gill, fin, and fry) and found high sensitivity to Largemouth Bass virus, viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus, and infectious pancreatic necrosis virus. We conclude that BHC are not heavily burdened by bacteria, viruses and parasites in the invaded study ecosystems, although they do harbor native bacteria and show potential for high sensitivity to endemic viruses.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.18
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• pp.7879-7884
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• 2014

To investigate the association between intake of freshwater fish and their fatty acids and the risk of breast cancer in Chinese women, we conducted a case-control study with 669 cases and 682 population-based controls in Jiangsu Province of China. A structured questionnaire was used to elicit detailed information. Unconditional logistic regression analysis was performed to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Total freshwater fish intake was linked to decrease in the adjusted OR for breast cancer, but without dose-dependence. Analyses by freshwater fish species showed that consumption of black carp and silver carp was inversely related to breast cancer risk, with adjusted-ORs for the highest intake category of black carp (${\geq}500g/month$) of 0.54 (95%CI=0.33-0.92; $P_{trend}$ <0.002) and for silver carp (${\geq}1000g/month$) of 0.19 (95%CI=0.11-0.33; $P_{trend}$ <0.001). In contrast, consumption of crucian carp was positively related to breast cancer risk, with an adjusted OR for the highest intake category (${\geq}1000g/month$) of 6.09 (95%CI=3.04-12.2; $P_{trend}$ <0.001). Moderate intakes of SFA, PUFA, n3-PUFA and n6-PUFA from freshwater fish may decrease the risk of breast cancer among premenopausal women. The findings of this study suggest that intake of freshwater fish and their fatty acids may modify risk of breast cancer, and that different species of freshwater fish could have a different actions on breast cancer risk. Future epidemiologic studies are needed to know the effects of freshwater fish intake on breast cancer risk and the cause of these effects.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.12 no.3_4
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• pp.15-22
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• 1997

This experiment was performed to examine the immuno-reactive characteristics of fish metal-binding protein, metallothionein (MT), and gain the practical understandings for the proposed use of fish MT as a biomarker. Liver MT induced by Cd in the silver carp was seperated and purified by gel filtration chromatography and ion exchange chromatography. The immuno-reactivity of fish MT was examined with 3 rabbit antisera. Fish MT showed little reactivity with rabbit anti-rat MT antiserum and a weak reactivity with anti-MT peptide antiserum while showed a strong reactivity with rabbit anti-fish MT antiserum. The time-course change of liver MT in the silver carp, after waterborne exposure to 1 ppm of Cd, was checked by Cd-hem method and established competitive ELISA. In both cases, the induction of liver MT showed a good increasing relationship with the exposure days. The results indicate that the fish MT can be developed as a useful biomonitoring means in the toxicological study and for the evaluation of water pollution.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.11 no.1_2
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• pp.11-17
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• 1996

The purpose of this experiment is to estabilish the sensitive and specific ELISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay) system for the detection of fish metallothionein (MT). Silver carp were injected with CA of 1-8mg/kg body wt. 4 times during 10 days. Silver carp was very tolerant species to CA. Cd induced MT in liver was seperated and purified by gel filtration chromatography and ion exchange chromatography and identified by spectrophotometry, native gel electrophoresis and western blot analysis. The rabbit antiserum was produced by immunizing rabbit with lyophilized MT, and the competitive ELISA system was estabilished for the detection of fish MT. In the present ELISA system, the detection limit was about 33 ng/ml. When this ELISA system was employed to determine the MT level in the supernatant sample of fish liver homogenate, the reaction curve showed a good parallel corelationship with the calibration curve over a certain dilution range. The results indicate that the competitive ELISA can be a useful tool for the detection of fish MT in the toxicological study and the evaluation of water pollution.