Validation of the i-STAT system for the analysis of blood parameters in fish

Abstract

The i-STAT system, a portable clinical analyzer, is increasingly being used to assess blood parameters in fish. This study validated the i-STAT system on rainbow trout blood under a broad range of conditions. Results indicate that the i-STAT is not an appropriate tool for assessing most blood parameters in rainbow trout.

Comparison of hematology, plasma biochemistry, and blood gas variables between 2 venipuncture sites in Southern Stingrays (Dasyatis americana)

“…The iStat analyzer also calculates percent oxygen saturation (sO 2 ) and base excess (BE), but these values were excluded from analysis because the calculations rely on assumptions of normal HGB and plasma protein concentrations for human samples and species‐specific blood oxygen affinity that are not applicable to elasmobranchs . The iStat analyzer provides a calculated temperature correction of pH, p CO 2 , and p O 2 , and these instrument‐calculated values have been reported previously for elasmobranch species, although in teleosts and elasmobranchs, p O 2 is overestimated, and p CO 2 is overestimated below 19 mmHg, which affects the bicarbonate calculation accordingly . Water temperature was used as a surrogate for directly measuring the animals' body temperature.…”

“…Venipuncture for the purpose of hematology and plasma biochemistry analysis is frequently used in the clinical assessment of elasmobranch health in captive and free‐ranging populations . Validation studies have been carried out on portable point‐of‐care blood analyzers in elasmobranch and teleost species, and these analyzers have been used to evaluate the physiologic impact of different capture methods in free‐ranging elasmobranchs …”

High capacity for extracellular acid-base regulation in the air-breathing fishPangasianodon hypophthalmus

“…Prior to the experiments, all gas mixing pumps were validated using a Servomex 570A Oxygen Analyzer. Harter et al (2014a) recently criticized the reliability of the iStat for blood gas measurements in fish at 10 and 20°C. To validate our iSTAT measurements from blood at 30°C, it was necessary to check for errors associated with the problems in temperature compensation (Malte et al, 2014).…”

Ambient CO2, fish behaviour and altered GABAergic neurotransmission: exploring the mechanism of CO2-altered behaviour by taking a hypercapnia dweller down to low CO2 levels

“…By contrast, in the hypercapniaadapted P. hypophthalmus, well-developed brain pH i regulation gabazine dose had worn off. The measurements were made using iStat System's portable clinical analyser, corrected for temperature and species according to Harter et al (2014) and Damsgaard et al (2015). For both figures, N=12 for the non-gabazine treatments and N=6 for the gabazine treatments.…”

“…Blood pH, P CO2 and HCO 3 − were measured using an iStat Systems portable clinical analyser. All measurements were temperature corrected to 27°C according to Harter et al (2014). These values were further corrected according to Damsgaard et al (2015).…”