Milkfish Larvae Research Articles

Effect of Vitamin C Bioencapsulation in Natural Feed on Protein, Fat, Energy, and Mortality of Milkfish Larvae (Chanos chanos)

Indications of milkfish larvae problems show lack symptoms of vitamin C in the tissues, which will cause defective bone formation and become an inhibitor factor in growth and mortality. This research aims to investigate the influence of vitamin C bioencapsulation on rotifer and artemia in protein retention, fat, energy, and the cause of death in milkfish larvae (Chanos chanos). The dose of vitamin C used in this study were 0 (control), 50, 100, 150, and 200 mg L-1. The treatment starts from D-1 to D-30 stadia of milkfish larvae, with 30-day maintenance. The density of milkfish larvae utilized is 20 L-1. The protein and fat content of milkfish larvae bodies were measured using a proximate analysis, and the energy content of the feed was measured using a bomb calorimeter. Mortality was observed under the Ministry of Health of Republic Indonesia standard binocular microscope by identifying larvae that died daily in each container. This research shows that vitamin C bioencapsulation in rotifer and artemia affects the retention rate of protein, fat, energy and the cause of milkfish larvae mortality. The dose of vitamin C of 150 and 200 mg L-1 is effective in improving protein, fat, and energy retention, which can minimize the cause of milkfish larvae mortality. The best results are obtained by bioencapsulating Vitamin C on rotifer and artemia with dose of 150 mg L-1.

Corrigendum to “Effect of Dietary Soy Lecithin Inclusion Levels on Growth, Feed Utilization, Fatty Acid Profile, Deformity and Survival of Milkfish (Chanos chanos) Larvae”

Corrigendum to “Effect of Dietary Soy Lecithin Inclusion Levels on Growth, Feed Utilization, Fatty Acid Profile, Deformity and Survival of Milkfish (Chanos chanos) Larvae”

Amino acid and fatty acid compositions of various stages of Chanos chanos larvae: Implications for larval feed formulation

Amino acid (AA) and fatty acid (FA) composition of the fertilised eggs and different larval stages (at 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 and21 days post-hatch, dph) of Chanos chanos was investigated. The total indispensable amino acids (IAA) contributed to55.62% of the total AA in the egg which reduced to 52.54% on 6 dph. The AA profile of C. chanos was found to be rich invaline (7.99%), leucine (7.51%) and lysine (6.98%) and poor in histidine (2.36%) and methionine (2.47%), indicating a highvaline, leucine and lysine requirement. The docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) content recorded for egg, newly hatched larvae(NHL) and 21 dph larvae were 2.77, 1.36 and 1.94 mg g-1, respectively. The reduction of fatty acids (FAs) was found to bevery high in newly hatched larvae (NHL), especially that of DHA (51%), ARA (26%) and EPA (24%), which indicates thesignificance of these FAs during the embryogenesis of milkfish egg. The trend observed during different stages of AAs andFAs content indicates their requirement during the larval period and those values are to be considered while formulatingfeeds for larval stages of milkfish. Keywords: Embryogenesis, Larval feed, Milkfish larvae, Nutrient requirement

Effect of dietary vitamin E supplementation on growth, fatty acid composition, intestinal histology, and haemato-immune indices of milkfish, Chanos chanos, larvae

ABSTRACT Vitamin E is one of the most important vitamins in aquatic animal breeding, larval growth, and development. It is also considered to be a functional feed addtitive for its antioxidant and immunity-improvement role resulting in better survival and growth during early life stages. However, the role of vitamin E in the diet of milkfish larvae has not been studied in detail. Moreover, the optimal requirement of vitamin E for improved survival and growth in the larval stages of milkfish is yet to be ascertained. A 45-day feeding experiment was conducted to elucidate the effect of dietary vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) supplementation on the growth, survival, and fatty acid composition of milkfish, Chanos chanos, larvae. During the trial, five iso-nitrogenous and iso-energetic (~580 g kg−1 crude protein, 120 g kg−1 crude lipid) experimental larval diets with varying levels of vitamin E 0 (control E0), 100 (E100), 200 (E200), 300 (E300) and 400 (E400) mg kg−1 were tested in 18 days posthatch larvae (mean weight: 48.25 ± 0.08 mg). Milkfish larvae (1,500) were randomly distributed into 15 fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) rectangular tanks of 100 L capacity (n = 100) in a flow-through rearing system. The results revealed that larvae fed with a diet containing vitamin E supplementation at 200 mg (E200) enhanced (p < .05) the growth performance, final body weight (371.7 ± 12.80 mg), weight gain percentage (628.76 ± 63.12%), and specific growth rate (4.31 ± 0.80%) compared with the E0 fed diet. Also, fish feed with E200 diet had a significantly higher protein efficiency ratio (0.53 ± 0.08) than the control (E0) (0.40 ± 0.01). Vitamin E and lipid content of postfed whole larvae were linearly correlated (R 2 = 0.956) with dietary vitamin E inclusions up to 300 mg kg−1. Histological examinations revealed that the length of intestinal villi and the concentration of lymphoid cells in the lamina propria of the treatments E200, E300, and E400 were higher, compared to E0 and E100 treatments. Red blood cell (p < 0.05) and white blood cell (p < 0.01) counts were significantly higher in E200 treatment than in the rest of the treatments. Larvae fed with an E200 and E300 diet showed significantly (p < 0.05) increased total lymphocyte count, while myelocyte count was significantly decreased (p < 0.01). Based on a curvilinear (polynomial) regression analyses, the optimum specific growth rate, final body weight, weight gain, protein efficiency ratio, and feed efficiency ratio were obtained at dietary vitamin E levels of 210, 205, 207, 243, and 242 mg kg−1 diet, respectively. Accordingly, the optimum dietary vitamin E required for milkfish in a range of 205 to 243 mg kg−1 is beneficial for better health, survival, and growth. The findings of this study can be used as the baseline scientific information on the vitamin E requirement for the formulation of a cost‐effective diet for milkfish larvae.

Effect of Dietary Lipid Sources and Their Combinations on Growth and Fatty Acid Composition of Milkfish (Chanos chanos) Larvae

Background: The success of larval rearing is greatly influenced by first feeding regimes and the nutritional quality of weaning diets, with dietary lipids being recognized as one of the most important nutritional factors that affect larval growth and survival. Reports are scanty on milkfish larval nutrition and growth and survival unlike other marine species. Methods: In this investigation during 2020, five larval diets were prepared with 40 g kg-1 of entirely fish oil (F4), corn oil (C4) or fish oil and corn oil in 3:1 (F3C1), 2:2 (F2C2) and 1:3 (F1C3) ratios. Each diet was fed to triplicate groups of milkfish larvae (45 mg) in a flow-through rearing system for 42 days. Result: A growth indices were highest in the F3C1 group, followed by F2C2, F4 and other dietary treatments. The whole-body fatty acid profile was found to change significantly with increasing fish oil replacement with corn oil, i.e., the n-3 polyunsaturated and saturated fatty acid proportions decreased linearly, while the n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids content increased. Overall, this study reveals that growth and survival of milkfish is dependent on dietary lipid source or combinations that meet the essential fatty acid requirements during the early life stages.

Hatching and survival rate of milkfish (Chanos chanos) larvae treated with nanosilver

This study was aimed to know the effect of hatching and survival rate of milkfish larvae (Chanos chanos) treated with nanosilver. Three concentrations of nanosilver such as 0.25 ppm, 0.5 ppm and 0.75 ppm were applied to culture media at least an hour before stocking. Newly hatched larvae were stocked at the density of 50 pcs l-1, and it was reared for 25 days in 5 m3 of concrete tank. Result of the study found that no significant effect (p&gt;0.05) of the treatments given on hatching rate and survival of milkfish larvae. However, larvae treated with nanosilver tend to gain higher hatching rate (65.5±4.1 86.6±19.0%) compared to control one (65.3±7.2%). Further, larvae survival it was ranged of 24.2±0.9-26.3±0.1% by the end of the trial. Nanosilver treatments has potential to reduce the total bacteria and Vibrio concentration into the media and need further study primarily on dosage and frequency used.

Production and use of wastewater-cultured Tetraselmis suecica for rearing Chanos chanos: an assessment on the advantages of chemical flocculate algal pastes on the growth, survival, and proximate composition of milkfish larvae

Production and use of wastewater-cultured Tetraselmis suecica for rearing Chanos chanos: an assessment on the advantages of chemical flocculate algal pastes on the growth, survival, and proximate composition of milkfish larvae

Effect of dietary soy lecithin inclusion levels on growth, feed utilization, fatty acid profile, deformity and survival of milkfish (Chanos chanos) larvae

In this study, we examined the effect of different dietary inclusion levels of soy lecithin on growth, feed utilization, digestive enzyme activity, whole body fatty acid profile, body deformity and survival of milkfish (Chanos chanos) larvae, through a six-week feeding experiment. During the trial, five isonitrogenous and isoenergetic (~580 g kg−1 protein, 120 g kg−1 lipid and 20.5 MJ kg−1) practical larval diets with different levels of soy lecithin (0, 17.5, 35, 52.5 and 70 g Kg−1 in place of fish oil) were fed to triplicate groups of 18 days post-hatch milkfish larvae, three times a day, to visual satiation. At the end of the trial, larvae fed SL52.5 diet showed significantly higher final mean body weight (0.81 g), weight gain and specific growth rate, as compared to the other dietary groups. Feed intake was found to increase (0.74–1.54) linearly with increasing inclusion of soy lecithin. Corresponding to growth estimates, SL52.5 group had low FCR (2.37) and higher intestinal lipase activity than the rest. Likewise, the highest larval survival rate was recorded in SL52.5 and SL70. Protein efficiency (PER) was high in SL35, followed by SL52.5 group. The percentage of deformed larvae decreased with higher dietary phospholipid content, albeit with no statistically significant difference. The fatty acid composition of milkfish larvae was apparently independent of the dietary fatty acid content, with no significant dietary correlation. Overall, the results of the present study ascertained the beneficial role of dietary phospholipids in milkfish larval nutrition, and using second-order polynomial regression analysis, 59.6 g kg−1 soy lecithin was found to be the optimal inclusion level in milkfish larval feeds.

PROFIL OSMOTIK GELONDONGAN IKAN BANDENG (Chanos chanos Forsskal) SELAMA PROSES KULTIVASI DI TAMBAK BANDENG DESA WONOREJO KABUPATEN KENDAL

Milkfish is euryhaline fish that can live in wide range salinity, so it will affect with osmoregulation processes. This research aimed to examine the osmotic response of milkfish fingerling during cultivation processes in brackishwater ponds at Wonorejo Village district of Kendal. The research was conducted on July-October 2016. The cultivation process of milkfish fingerling has been cultured for 60 days in 2000 m2 brackishwater pond. The initial density of milkfish larvae was 100 individuals /m2 with a lenght size of 10 mm on average and 15 days old. Samples of milkfish fingerling were taken on the 20th, 40th and 60th days, the number of samples was 3 individuals every size. The measurement result of blood osmolarity was 460, 05 to 490.10 mOsm / l H2O higher than media osmolarity 38,98 – 194,5 mOsm/l H2O. The osmotic response of milkfish fingerling were hyperosmotic to the hypotonic environment and osmoregulator fish.

PENGARUH KONSENTRASI NIRA AREN (Arenga pinnata) TERHADAP SINTASAN DAN PERTUMBUHAN LARVA IKAN BANDENG (Chanos chanos Forskal)

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh konsentrasi nira aren (Arenga pinnata) terhadap sintasan dan pertumbuhan larva ikan bandeng (Chanos chanos Forskal) dan mendapatkan konsentrasi nira terbaik untuk sintasan dan pertumbuhan larva ikan bandeng. Penelitian menggunakan metode eksperimen yang dirancang menggunakan Rancangan Acak Lengkap (RAL) terdiri atas empat perlakuan yang diulang sebanyak tiga kali ulangan. Perlakuan yang diuji yaitu penambahan nira ke dalam media pemeliharaan larva dengan konsentrasi 2,4 ml/l, konsentrasi 4,8 ml/l, konsentrasi 7,2 ml/l dan tanpa penambahan nira (0 ml/l) sebagai kontrol. Penelitian ini dilaksanakan di Balai Budidaya Laut Sekotong, Kabupaten Lombok Barat, Provinsi Nusa Tenggara Barat selama 30 hari mulai dari tanggal 31 Agustus 2019 – 24 September 2019. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa penambahan nira ke dalam media pemeliharaan larva ikan bandeng memberikan pengaruh yang nyata pada sintasan dan pertumbuhan larva ikan bandeng (Fhit&gt; Ftab 5%). Sintasan larva, laju pertumbuhan spesifik harian bobot tubuh dan pertumbuhan mutlak panjang total larva tertinggi diperoleh pada perlakuan konsentrasi nira 7,2 ml/l dengan nilai masing-masing parameter yaitu 67,85%, 15,25% per hari dan 9,05 mm selama 18 hari pemeliharaan. Ketiga parameter pada perlakuan konsentrasi ini tidak menunjukkan perbedaan yang nyata dengan perlakuan konsentrasi nira 4,8 ml/l dan 2,4 ml/l namun berbeda nyata dengan perlakuan kontrol (0 ml/l). Disarankan untuk menerapkan penambahan nira dalam media pemeliharaan larva ikan bandeng dengan konsentrasi maksimum 7,2 ml/l. Perlu dilakukan penelitian lebih lanjut tentang peningkatan konsentrasi nira di atas 7,2 ml/l pada media pemeliharaan larva ikan bandeng untuk mendapatkan konsentrasi yang optimum bagi sintasan dan pertumbuhan larva ikan bandeng.

The growth of milkfish (Chanos chanos Forsskål, 1775) larvae from several hatcheries for productivity support for development culture in the pond

The growth of milkfish (Chanos chanos Forsskål, 1775) larvae from several hatcheries for productivity support for development culture in the pond

PLANKTON DISTRIBUTION IN CONTROLLED WATER OF MILKFISH LARVA CULTURE SYSTEM

The selection of planktons as live feed for milkfish larvae is a vital tool to meet the natural character as herbivorous species and to fulfill the needs for nutritious food for fish larval growth and survival. Phytoplankton Nannochloropsis sp. and zooplankton rotifer (Brachionus sp.) were two-selected plankton used as the main food source for the milkfish larvae. We performed this study in two times larval culture batch with four observations of tanks as replication. The results showed that we nourished both targeted planktons as larval food, regarding the positive impacts on larval growth (12±1,37 mm of total length, 7±4.89 mg of body weight) and a high survival rate (65.93–77.70%) achieved at the end of the culture period. Plankton diversity analysis presented that Class of rotifer (Monogononta) and Nannochloropsis sp. (Eustigmatophyceae) were both counted as the most dominant plankton group found in the rearing media, showing a decent sign of food supply for fish in rearing water column. The total number of planktons was high and had the tendency to follow the concentration of selected planktons over the culture period in the controlled water.

Spirulina platensis DIET FOR MILKFISH, Chanos chanos, LARVAE

In aquaculture, Spirulina platensis is used as feed supplement in which contains amino acid phenylalanine. This study was conducted to evaluate the differences in the effect of spirulina-based microcapsules and commercial diets on the absolute, daily and specific growth and survival rates of milkfish larvae. The larvae were fed with Spirulina platensis as a core diet in microcapsules with different matrix (walls). The first capsule wall was gelatin and fish oil, while the second capsule wall was gelatin, fish oil and whole egg. The control group was fed with the commercial diet. A total of 1200 larvae were used in this experiments using the recirculation systems. The experiment was conducted in 42 days of culture. Larvae were fed three times a day and the feed was increased regularly as the size of the larvae increased. The results showed that the effects of both sprirulina-based microcapsules diets on the absolute growth rate (AG), specific growth rate (SGR) and average daily growth rate (ADGR) of Chanos chanos larvae were the same as on those larvae which were fed with the commercial diet. The survival rates were at 80.6±11.17% for those fed with Spirulina platensis with gelatin and fish oil wall; 84.6±8.44% for those fed with Spirulina platrensis with gelatin, fish oil and whole egg wall, and; 83.8±16.50% for those fed with the commercial diet. This study showed that Spirulina-based microcapsules had the same effect as the commercial feed on the growth of milkfish larvae indicating that this diet could replace the commercial diet.

RNA/DNA ratio in milkfish (Chanos Chanos) larvae reared at different stocking densities

Stocking density can induce stress in fish in an aquaculture system if not handled properly, and the chronic stress may lead to mortality. Several studies have reported that the capability to deal with a range of stocking densities differs among fish species and maturity stage. Hence, fish larvae may have different resilience to stress from the adult fish. Milkfish larvae were reared in hatchery for 50 days using a recirculating culture system at four different stocking densities (8,12,16 and 20 larvae/liter). The growth performance was not significantly different (P&gt;0.05) except at stocking density of 20 larvae/liter. The highest survival rate (88.04%) was recorded in the system with 8 larvae/liter while the lowest (55.44%) in the culture tank where stocking rate was 20 larvae/liter. The stocking density also influenced the RNA / DNA ratio of the milkfish larvae. The RNA/DNA ratio showed a pattern that was identical with that of sigmoid growth where stocking rate of 8, 12, and 16 larvae/liter gained weight until 30 days of rearing. Highest RNA/DNA ratio was recorded at 16 larvae/liter (2.85±0.004), while the lowest was at 20 larvae/liter (2.25±0.217). Food availability might play a limiting factor that leads to the lower RNA/DNA ratio of larvae reared at a high density due to competition.

Effect of tank colour on foraging capacity, growth and survival of milkfish (Chanos chanos) larvae

Larviculture of milkfish (Chanos chanos) associated with issues like larval deformity, mass mortalities which contribute in variable seed production. Effect of abiotic factors as rearing tank colour and illumination on larvae foraging behaviour, prey localization and ingestion were investigated to improvise milkfish larval rearing system. Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) tanks (capacity, 8 t; water salinity, 32 ppt) with three different background colors, white, blue and yellow were divided in five (05) treatment groups with triplicates, i.e. indoor white (T1/C), blue (T2), yellow (T3) color tanks with artificial illumination and semi outdoor blue (T4), yellow (T5) color tanks with solar illumination. Newly hatched milkfish larvae (tl., 3.4 mm) were stocked in the experimental tanks @ 2.5 no l−1 and apart from background colour and source of illumination uniform water quality and feeding regime were maintained in all treatments. Phytoplankton, Chlorella salina @ 103–104 cells ml−1 were maintained from 2 dph to 20 dph; Chlorella grown rotifers, Brachionus plicatilis (enriched with Nannochloropsis oculata paste) were provided @ 20–30 no ml−1 from 3 dph to 14 dph depending on the larval density. Artemia nauplii @ 0.5–1.0 no ml−1 was introduced from 15 dph. At the end of the experiment- 20 dph, highest (p < 0.05) larval survival (45 ± 5.63%) was achieved in tanks providing yellow background colour (T5) compared to control and other treatments. Larval growth (tl., 17.1 ± 1.37 mm) was also found to be highest (p < 0.05) in T5. Increased survival and growth of milkfish in T5 was synchronized with significantly higher (p < 0.05) specific growth rate (SGR), larval gut content relative to other treatments. Milkfish larvae being a day feeder did maximum foraging during 0700 h to 1600 h evident from decreeing prey abundance during that period and as a result positive correlation found between larval standard length and gut content. Larval visibility enhancement in solar illuminated yellow tank act synergistically to perform necessary foraging to acquire nutritional energy for metamorphosis to fry. Above phenomenon may not have occurred in other treatments except T5 and partially in T3. Solar illuminated yellow colour tanks significantly contribute towards mass scale seed production of milkfish.

Nutritional Value of Pseudodiaptomus annandalie (Copepoda: Calanoida) and its Suitability as Feed to Milkfish Larvae

The nutritional value of Pseudodiaptomus annandalie and its suitability as feed to milkfish larvae were determined. Pure isolates of P. annandalie was subjected to feeding in four different microalgal species (Chlorella sp., Chaetoceros calcitrans, Isochrysis galbana and Tetraselmis chuii) for 15 days of culture. Lipid extraction was done using Bligh and Dyer method and analyzed in a gas chromatograph for fatty acid profile. Results were analyzed using univariate ANOVA (p.0.05) and subsequent Tukey tests. Results of the first experiment showed that the number of fatty acids in P. annandalie varied significantly at different microalgal diets. DHA/EPA ratio was highest in Chaetoceros calcitrans (4.91%). This suggest that Chaetoceros calcitrans is the best microalgal food for P. annandalie because it promotes high DHA/EPA ratio in its fatty acid profile which is an important requirement for fish larvae. When live P. annandalie together with other natural foods were tested, results showed that treatment fed live copepods had significantly (p&lt;0.05) higher average length after day 24 (14.86+0.78 mm) over other treatments. Survival rate was significantly highest in treatment fed live P. annandalie (65.58+0.65%) compared with other treatments. Live copepod therefore is a suitable feed for milkfish larvae because it contains a high fatty acid profile.

SURVIVAL AND GROWTH OF MILKFISH (Chanos chanos) LARVAE UNDER DIFFERENT COLOUR VALUES OF ORANGE

An orange painted tank was proved to be suitable for rearing milkfish larvae, However, light intensity was suspected to affect the suitability such tanks.

VERTEBRAL DEVELOPMENT AND PROTEASE ACTIVITY OF LARVAL MILKFISH, Chanos chanos Forsskal IN DIFFERENT REARING MEDIA

&lt;p&gt;The milkfish (&lt;span style="text-decoration: underline;"&gt;Chanos&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style="text-decoration: underline;"&gt;chanos&lt;/span&gt; Forsskal) seed quality is an important factor for supporting the fisheries industrialization program . The egg fertility and larval rearing management are two main factors to improve the quality of the seed. The aim of this research was to obtain the information about those two indicators on milkfish larvae, reared in different media. About 100,000 eggs were located in 6 units of the outdoor concrete tank with volume of 6 m&lt;sup&gt;3&lt;/sup&gt;. Larvae were reared due to the rearing standard procedure while the feeding management was adapted during larvae development. Two different treatments in larval rearing medium were with and without the addition of molasses, subsequently in triple trials. This study started from hatching day (0 DAH) until the end of larval rearing period (16-18 DAH). The growth parameters such as vertebrae analyses and survival were taken in the end of research periods, while protease assessment was analyzed every day using tyrosine and casein standard methods. The results showed that the molasses addition produced a higher growth (TL 12.95±0.87 mm) and survival rate (87.66±1.52%), better vertebral performance (44-45 segments), and higher protease activity (0.1392-0.3863 U/ml/min) than without molasses addition. The results indicated that molasses addition in larvae rearing medium improved the larvae quality.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Keywords: Protease enzime activity,milkfish seeds, molasses, vertebrae&lt;/p&gt;

VERTEBRAL DEVELOPMENT AND PROTEASE ACTIVITY OF LARVAL MILKFISH, Chanos chanos Forsskal IN DIFFERENT REARING MEDIA

The milkfish (Chanos chanos Forsskal) seed quality is an important factor for supporting the fisheries industrialization program . The egg fertility and larval rearing management are two main factors to improve the quality of the seed. The aim of this research was to obtain the information about those two indicators on milkfish larvae, reared in different media. About 100,000 eggs were located in 6 units of the outdoor concrete tank with volume of 6 m3. Larvae were reared due to the rearing standard procedure while the feeding management was adapted during larvae development. Two different treatments in larval rearing medium were with and without the addition of molasses, subsequently in triple trials. This study started from hatching day (0 DAH) until the end of larval rearing period (16-18 DAH). The growth parameters such as vertebrae analyses and survival were taken in the end of research periods, while protease assessment was analyzed every day using tyrosine and casein standard methods. The results showed that the molasses addition produced a higher growth (TL 12.95±0.87 mm) and survival rate (87.66±1.52%), better vertebral performance (44-45 segments), and higher protease activity (0.1392-0.3863 U/ml/min) than without molasses addition. The results indicated that molasses addition in larvae rearing medium improved the larvae quality. Keywords: Protease enzime activity,milkfish seeds, molasses, vertebrae

Nutritional components affecting skeletal development in fish larvae

Marine fish larvae undergo major functional and morphological changes during the developmental stages and several factors can interfere with the normal development of larvae and affect fry quality. Skeletal malformations, such as spinal malformation—scoliosis, lordosis, coiled vertebral column-, missing or additional fin rays, bending opercle or jaw malformations, are frequently observed in hatchery-reared larvae. This paper reviews the effects of some nutritional components on skeletal development in larvae of a number of fish species. In the dietary lipid fraction, for instance, it was proven that the phospholipid concentration affected the spinal malformation rate in sea bass fed a compound diet from mouth opening onwards. Phosphatidylinositol, in particular, seems to prevent skeletal deformities. Highly unsaturated fatty acids, and particularly DHA enrichment in live prey, induce a decrease of opercular deformities in milkfish. It is known that highly unsaturated fatty acids have profound effects on gene expression, leading to changes in metabolism, growth and cell differentiation, and these effects are worth investigating in developing fish. The nature of the dietary protein fraction also affects the quality of fish larvae development. It appears that dietary incorporation of 20 amino acid peptides or di- and tripeptides leads to a reduction of spinal malformations in sea bass. Among vitamins, the teratogenic effect of retinoic acid is now well documented in vertebrates. High dietary retinoic acid levels result in higher incidence of bone deformities, such as vertebral curvature, central fusion and compression of vertebra in Japanese flounder larvae. The teratogenic effect of retinoic acid observed in embryonic and postembryonic stages was explained by a depression of shh expression. As for vitamin C, opercular abnormalities in milkfish larvae, associated with distortion of gill filament cartilages, were reduced by 50% when feeding larvae with ascorbic acid enriched rotifers and Artemia, compared to control fish.