Abstract
Sea cucumbers are a valuable resource both for food and the production of nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals, and as a result, the market for the giant California sea cucumber, Parastichopus californicus, has greatly increased, resulting in the establishment of fisheries along the west coast of North America. The sea cucumber industry is poorly regulated, and the fisheries are not believed to be sustainable, so there is interest in promoting the intensive aquaculture of this species. Since aquaculture conditions can cause stress to animals, which makes them more susceptible to disease, it is important to determine the stress susceptibility of sea cucumbers to two potential stresses, handling and low salinity. In order to study the impact of these stressors, a variety of physiological and immunological assays were done on the coelomic fluid of giant California sea cucumbers. Assays included total and differential cell counts, coelomic fluid protein, phagocytic capacity, lytic activity, and respiratory burst activity. Our results indicated that there were few significant differences from the control, and no differences in parameters analyzing immune function. These results indicate that the giant California sea cucumber is likely to be productive in an aquaculture environment, and the culture of this species should be encouraged.
Highlights
The giant California sea cucumber (Parastichopus californicus), is found off the west coast of North America from Alaska through Mexico
Due to the problems associated with fisheries, interest has been turning to aquaculture, and though the Japanese sea cucumber has been successfully raised in aquaculture for decades, little is known about the biology and requirements of the giant California sea cucumber [4], and as yet no intensive or pond culture systems have been established for it
Animals in intensive aquaculture conditions are faced with a variety of factors that can cause stress, which can potentially lead to decreased growth, loss of immune function which increases susceptibility to disease, and increased mortality
Summary
The giant California sea cucumber (Parastichopus californicus), is found off the west coast of North America from Alaska through Mexico It is a one of the largest known species of sea cucumbers and can grow to a length of 20 inches (50 cm), and is an important food item for human consumption. The demand for sea cucumber is only increasing, in China, and this has allowed for the establishment of a market for the North American species P. californicus. This has led to the development of sea cucumber fisheries in British Columbia, Alaska, and down the west coast. Though research has been done on the growth of the sea cucumber in kept in culture with other species, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first research to examine the cellular responses of California sea cucumbers kept in intensive aquaculture conditions
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