Environmentally driven changes in Baltic salmon oxidative status during marine migration
Year of publication
2020
Authors
Kanerva, Mirella; Kiljunen, Mikko; Torniainen, Jyrki; Nikinmaa, Mikko; Dutz, Joerg; Vuori, Kristiina A.
Abstract
The fitness and recruitment of fish stocks can be markedly affected by environmental disturbances including global warming, eutrophication and contamination. Understanding the effects of environmental stressors on salmon physiology during marine residence is of a global concern as marine survival has decreased. We present a unique combination of physiological responses - antioxidant defence and oxidative damage biomarkers, stable isotopes and contaminant exposure biomarkers - measured from adult Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) collected at the Baltic Sea and studied in relation to environmental variables and fitness estimates. The results demonstrate that feeding populations of salmon display marked temporal and spatial variation in oxidative status. Better oxidative status of salmon was characterized by a higher amount of reduced glutathione (GSH) and decreased lipid peroxidation (LPX), when the weight-at-age of 3–4-year old sprats was higher and contaminant exposure biomarker (EROD) was lower. Summer season conditions, which included cooler sea surface temperature (SST), higher bottom O2 and less cyanobacteria also indicated conditions for better oxidative status. Summer SST was additionally shown to affected glutathione metabolism enzyme activities. Oxidative status was associated with stable isotopes δ13C and δ15N indicating indirect effect of abiotic conditions and lower levels of the food web. Differences in condition factor and growth were associated with oxidative status in one and two sea winter salmon, respectively. Wild salmon survival was higher in years when they had higher GSH and catalase activity and lower LPX. Enhanced glutathione metabolism and increased protein carbonyls were associated with higher occurrence of yolk-sac fry mortality (M74). Our results show that oxidative status can provide information on exposure to complex combinations of environmental conditions and stressors in the wild and provide a link of physiological function to individual and population level fitness effects.
Show moreOrganizations and authors
Publication type
Publication format
Article
Parent publication type
Journal
Article type
Original article
Audience
ScientificPeer-reviewed
Peer-ReviewedMINEDU's publication type classification code
A1 Journal article (refereed), original researchPublication channel information
Journal
Parent publication name
Publisher
Volume
742
Article number
140259
ISSN
Publication forum
Publication forum level
2
Open access
Open access in the publisher’s service
No
Self-archived
Yes
Other information
Fields of science
Environmental sciences; Ecology, evolutionary biology; Veterinary science
Keywords
[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]
Publication country
Netherlands
Internationality of the publisher
International
Language
English
International co-publication
Yes
Co-publication with a company
No
DOI
10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140259
The publication is included in the Ministry of Education and Culture’s Publication data collection
Yes