The purpose of this study was to estimate one of the important aspects of amphipod laboratory culturing — the effect of different types of nutrition on the key biochemical markers widely used in biomonitoring. The study was performed with the Baikal endemic amphipod species Eulimnogammarus verrucosus (Gerstfeldt, 1858), E. cyaneus (Dybowski, 1874), and Gmelinoides fasciatus (Stebbing, 1899). These species are characterized by different ecological properties and evolutionary history. The results of the study demonstrate that a long-term laboratory exposure to different diets has a direct effect on vital and physiological parameters of the species’ adaptation (mortality, weight, protein concentration). Also, feeding imposes its influence on the common stress-markers of oxidative stress (activities of peroxidase, catalase, glutathione S-transferase), and on anaerobic metabolism (activity of lactate dehydrogenase) in Baikal amphipods, and this effect has a species-specific character. The results should be taken into consideration in future ecophysiological experiments performed with amphipods.

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Lake Baikal is the only freshwater reservoir inhabited by deep-water fauna, which originated mostly from shallow-water ancestors. Ommatogammarus flavus and O. albinus are endemic scavenger amphipods (Amphipoda, Crustacea) dwelling in wide depth ranges of the lake covering over 1300 m. O. flavus had been previously collected close to the surface, while O. albinus has never been found above the depth of 47 m. Since O. albinus is a promising model species for various research, here we tested whether O. albinus is less metabolically adapted to atmospheric pressure than O. flavus. We analyzed a number of energy-related traits (contents of glucose, glycogen and adenylates, as well as lactate dehydrogenase activity) and oxidative stress markers (activities of antioxidant enzymes and levels of lipid peroxidation products) after sampling from different depths and after both species’ acclimation to atmospheric pressure. The analyses were repeated in two independent sampling campaigns. We found no consistent signs of metabolic disturbances or oxidative stress in both species right after lifting. Despite O. flavus surviving slightly better in laboratory conditions, during long-term acclimation, both species showed comparable reactions without critical changes. Thus, the obtained data favor using O. albinus along with O. flavus for physiological research under laboratory conditions.

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