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This study examines the structural differentiation of the apical crypts of mitochondria-rich cells (MRCs) in Nile tilapia as a response to osmotic challenge. Larvae were transferred from freshwater at 3 days post-hatch to 12.5 and 20 ppt and were sampled at 24- and 48-h post-transfer. Scanning electron microscopy allowed quantification of MRCs, based on apical crypt appearance and surface area, resulting in a morphological classification of 'sub-types', that is, Type I or absorptive (surface area range 5.2-19.6 µm(2)), Type II or active absorptive form (surface area range 1.1-15.7 µm(2)), Type III or weakly functioning form (surface area range 0.08-4.6 µm(2)) and Type IV or active secreting form (surface area range 4.1-11.7 µm(2)). Mucus cell crypts were discriminated from those of MRCs based on the presence of globular extensions and quantified. Density and frequency of MRCs and mucus cells varied significantly according to the experimental salinity and time post-transfer; in freshwater-adapted larvae, all types were present except Type IV but, following transfer to elevated salinities, Type I and Type II disappeared and appeared to be replaced by Type IV crypts. Type III crypt density remained constant following transfer. Transmission electron microscopy with immunogold labelling, using a novel pre-fixation technique with anti-Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase, allowed complementary ultrastructural visualisation of specific localisation of the antibodies on active MRCs, permitting a review of MRC apical morphology and related Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase binding sites.

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Ontogenetic changes in the location, size, density and morphology of chloride cells in the Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus adapted to fresh and brackish water are described using Na(+) /K(+) -ATPase immunohistochemistry, light microscopy (LM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM). The pattern of chloride cell distribution changed during development under both treatments, with chloride cell density decreasing significantly from hatch to 7 days post-hatch, but appearing on the inner opercular area at 3 days post-hatch and increasing significantly thereafter (P < 0·05). Chloride cells were always denser in fresh- than in brackish-water larvae. In both treatments, chloride cells located on the outer operculum and tail showed a marked increase in size with age, but cells located on the abdominal epithelium of the yolk sac and the inner operculum showed a significant decrease in size (P < 0·05). Chloride cells from brackish-water adapted larvae from 1 day post-hatch onwards were always significantly larger (P < 0·05) than those from freshwater-adapted larvae. SEM revealed structural differences in chloride cell apical morphology according to environmental conditions. There appears to be clearly defined temporal staging of the appearance of adaptive mechanisms that confer an ability to cope with varying environmental conditions during early development.

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This study subdivides the cryopreservation procedure for Diplodus puntazzo spermatozoa into three key phases, fresh, prefreezing (samples equilibrated in cryosolutions), and postthawed stages, and examines the ultrastructural anomalies and motility profiles of spermatozoa in each stage, with different cryodiluents. Two simple cryosolutions were evaluated: 0.17 M sodium chloride containing a final concentration of 15% dimethyl sulfoxide (Me(2)SO) (cryosolution A) and 0.1 M sodium citrate containing a final concentration of 10% Me(2)SO (cryosolution B). Ultrastructural anomalies of the plasmatic and nuclear membranes of the sperm head were common and the severity of the cryoinjury differed significantly between the pre- and the postfreezing phases and between the two cryosolutions. In spermatozoa diluted with cryosolution A, during the prefreezing phase, the plasmalemma of 61% of the cells was absent or damaged compared with 24% in the fresh sample (P < 0.001). In spermatozoa diluted with cryosolution B, there was a pronounced increase in the number of cells lacking the head plasmatic membrane from the prefreezing to the postthawed stages (from 32 to 52%, P < 0.01). In both cryosolutions, damages to nuclear membrane were significantly higher after freezing (cryosolution A: 8 to 23%, P < 0.01; cryosolution B: 5 to 38%, P < 0.001). With cryosolution A, the after-activation motility profile confirmed a consistent drop from fresh at the prefreezing stage, whereas freezing and thawing did not affect the motility much further and 50% of the cells were immotile by 60-90 s after activation. With cryosolution B, only the postthawing stage showed a sharp drop of motility profile. This study suggests that the different phases of the cryoprocess should be investigated to better understand the process of sperm damage.

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Androgenesis is a potentially valuable technique for recovering fish from gene banks composed of cryopreserved sperm, developing inbred lines, and analyzing patterns of inheritance. The procedure for producing diploid organisms whose nuclear DNA is wholly of paternal origin is dependent on: (1) the denucleation of "host" eggs, and (2) the inhibition of the first mitotic division in order to double the haploid sperm chromosome complement following fertilization of host eggs. Denucleation of tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus L.) eggs was carried out using UV irradiation. Treatment durations of 5-8 min (total dose of 450-720 J/m(2)) produced acceptable yields of viable denucleated eggs [22.9±1.6% (±SE) of controls] as estimated by the survival of haploid androgenetic tilapia to 48 h post-fertilization. Successful mitotic inhibition was accomplished using a heat-shock of 42.5 °C for 3-4 min, applied at 2.5-min intervals from 22.5 to 30 min post-fertilization (mpf). The mean survival of androgenetic diploid fish to yolk-sac absorption for treatment groups varied from 0.4% to 5.3%, relative to the controls. Differences in the suceptibility of eggs from different females to UV irradiation were a significant factor in the overall yield of androgenetic diploids. Paternal effects did not significantly influence the androgenetic yield, suggesting that individual males would not be selected against. For comparative purposes mitotic gynogenetic "mitogyne" diploids were produced from UV-irradiated sperm. Mean survival to yolk-sac absorption varied from 0.5% to 10.64%, relative to controls. Similar optima for androgenetic and gynogenetic induction were found in the period 25-27.5 mpf (minutes post-fertilization). Induction treatments would appear to be operating on the same developmental events in both these techniques, and the results suggest that the UV irradiations used do relatively little damage to the eggs beyond nuclear inactivation. The results indicate that the production of androgenetic O. niloticus is possible on a consistent basis and that the application of this technique may be useful in quantitative and conservation genetics.