Nitrite stress disrupts the structural integrity and induces oxidative stress response in the intestines of Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei

Abstract

The acute toxicity of nitrite on the mucosal morphology and oxidative stress response was investigated in the intestines of Litopenaeus vannamei after the exposure of 20 mg/L nitrite for 72 hr. The duration of nitrite stress influenced the shrimp survival, and the cumulative mortality rate was 36.7% at 72 hr. Hematoxylin and eosin (HE) stain showed that nitrite stress damaged the intestine connective and epithelium tissue. Specifically, nitrite stress increased the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production (O generation capacity), lipid peroxidation (LPO), and malondialdehyde (MDA). Meanwhile, the activities of antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD) increased first, then catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) increased to the highest at 24 and 12 hr, respectively. The relative expression level of antioxidant genes including heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), ferritin, and thioredoxin (Trx) increased to the highest at 6, 12, and 48 hr respectively. After exposure to nitrite stress for 72 hr, the levels of antioxidant enzymes activity and genes expression all decreased. These results revealed that nitrite stress harmed the intestine barrier of L. vannamei by damaging the mucosal structure, inducing the oxidative stress, and confusing the antioxidant status.

Dietary γ-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) Promotes Growth and Resistance to Vibrio alginolyticus in Whiteleg Shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei

“…Shrimp are often cultured in highly intensive systems, thereby increasing their susceptibility to high ammonia accumulation from excessive feeding. Oxidative stress can be caused by ammonia or nitrite accumulation through the production of reactive oxygen species [60]. Liang et al [61] asserted that nonspecific immune response of antioxidant enzymes such as SOD and glutathione peroxidase can eliminate oxidative stress.…”

Construction of a High-Density Genetic Map and Identification of Quantitative Trait Loci for Nitrite Tolerance in the Pacific White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei)

“…Nitrite is one of the most common contaminants of aquaculture systems. Nitrite pollution has deleterious effects on shrimp, inhibiting growth and immunity, stimulating stress responses, and increasing disease risks; in some cases, high nitrite levels may even cause shrimp death (Tseng and Chen, 2004;Brown et al, 2013;Guo et al, 2016;Duan et al, 2018;Valencia-Castaneda et al, 2018).…”

Construction of a high-density genetic map and identification of quantitative trait loci for nitrite tolerance in the Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei)

“…Nitrite is one of the most common contaminants of aquaculture systems. Nitrite pollution has deleterious effects on shrimp, inhibiting growth and immunity, stimulating stress responses, and increasing disease risks; in some cases, high nitrite levels may even cause shrimp death [12,13,[41][42][43]. As shrimp are an important aquaculture organism, it is therefore critical to identify the genetic mechanisms underlying nitrite tolerance in shrimp.…”