메기 (Silurus asotus) 기아 시 조직학적 변화

A 210-day experiment was conducted to examine the effects of starvation on survival, the gonadosomatic index (GSI), hepatosomatic index (HSI), and the intestinosomatic index (ISI), and histological changes in the renal tubule epithelium, midgut epithelium, and hepatocytes in Far Eastern catfish (Silurus asotus). The survival rate decreased to 92.2±0.47% in the fed group and 74.4±2.59% in the starved group during the 210-day experimental period. GSI, HSI, and ISI were lowest in the starved group (p<0.05). The hepatocyte nuclear area, hepatocyte cell area, the nuclear height of the midgut epithelium, and the nuclear height of the kidney were highest in the fed group (p<0.05). The hepatocyte nuclear area, nuclear height of the midgut epithelium, and nuclear height of the kidney were lowest in the starved group (p<0.05). The numbers of melano-macrophages (MMs) found in the kidney cells increased during starvation in this species. This suggests that thinner body cavity regions, the contraction of hepatocyte nuclear sites, and the spreading of kidney cell MMs in this species could be used as alternative indicators for identifying starvation conditions. Therefore, the results from our study provide accurate indications of the nutritional status of Far Eastern catfish.