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The annual reproductive cycle of peal oyster Pinctada fucata was characteised by documenting gonadal development and changes in serum levels of estradiol-17b (E₂), testosterone (T) and progesterone (P) in the wild bivalve caught in natural beds in the Persian Gulf throughout the year. Bivalve populations employed in this study spawn in June-July and November-December. The pearl oysters had group synchronous ovarian development with exogenous vitellogenesis during spring and summer for first spawning and during August-September for the second spawning. Serum E₂ levels in the females increased rapidly from low values in May to peak in June and also in October coinciding with the time of spawning. Serum T levels in male and female exhibited a bimodal pattern. However in the male it increased during the early spermatogenesis. P was detected in both females and males. Its concentrations start to increase during the early gametogenesis and reaching to peak during the spawning season. The obtained results indicated that vitellogenesis and spermatogenesis in pearl oyster are not completed by the mi-summer and early winter.

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The micropyle number in the ova of sturgeon species from the South Caspian Sea was investigated. The study was conducted on female broodfishes of three species of sturgeon (Persian sturgeon Acipenser persicus, Stetates sturgeon A. stellatus and great sturgeon Huso huso) included 44 Persian sturgeon, 13 stellate sturgeon and 8 great sturgeon specimens. Fifty eggs were randomly collected from each broodfish and the micropyle number of totally 3250 eggs was determined. Out of 44 Persian sturgeon used, 14 specimens were collected from the south-east Caspian region (Golestan Province, Shaid Marjani Center) and 30 were from the south-west Caspian region (Guilan Province, Shahid Dr. Beheshti Center). The stellate sturgeon specimens were taken from the south-west and the great sturgeon specimens from the south-east Caspian region. The obtained result showed that the mean micropyle number in Persian sturgeon caught from the south-east Caspian region was 8 whereas in those caught from the south-west region was 9. There was no significant difference (p>0.95) in the micropyle number of Persian sturgeon collected from the south-east and south-west regions. The mean micropyle number determined for stellate and great sturgeon was 5. The outer diameter of the micropyle in the Persian, stellate, and great sturgeon were 22 μm, 17 μm and 19 μm respectively.

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This study was carried out to find any relative concentrations of the trace metals (Cu, Cd, Zn and Pb) in the liver and the kidney of Acipenser persicus and in the surficial sediments of the west coast of The Southern Caspian Sea. Twenty five samples of the Acipenser persicus (Persian sturgeon) and ten samples of the sediments were taken from five fishing stations in autumn 2001. The tissues were digested by wet method and the sediments were digested by dry method. Every digested sample was separately analysed by AAS (Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy). Recovery, mean, ANOVA, correlation coefficient and hierarchical cluster analysis were calculated. It was concluded that the concentrations of the studied trace metals (Cu, Cd, Zn and Pb) were at the standard level and there was a positive correlation coefficient between the kidney and the liver in the concentrations of Cd and Pb.

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Bioaccumulation of heavy metals including Cd, Pb, Cu and Zn in muscle, gill, liver, kidney and stomach in Acipencer persicus was studied. Fish were collected from the ‘Iranian fishery zone 1’ located between Astara and Kiyahshahr. Samples (n=25) were collected from five stations in the study area during the autumn catch season in 2001. Samples were analyzed by wet digestion with hydrogen peroxide and nitric acid. Analyses were testified using spike method. A sample of bovine liver (CRM 185R) was tested to ascertain reliability of analyses. Digested samples were analyzed using Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The bioaccumulation pattern for Zn in different tissues studied was stomach>liver> kidney> gills>muscle tissue. The mean concentration of Zn in the stomach was 136.6±10.70mg g^-1 dry weight. Cu with the maximum concentration of 39.71±8.85mg g^-1 dry weight in liver showed a bioaccumulation pattern of liver>kidney>stomach>gills>muscle tissue. The bioaccumulation pattern for Pb was determined as gills>liver> kidney>stomach>muscle tissue. Maximum mean concentrations of Pb 6.87±2.25mg g^-1 dry weight belonged to gills. Bioaccumulation pattern for Cd in the different organs studied in A. persicus was kidney>liver>gills>stomach> muscle tissue. Maximum mean concentration of 5.1±0.97mg g^-1 dry weight belonged to kidneys and the minimum mean concentration of 0.05±0.007mg g^-1 dry weight belonged to muscle tissue. Concentration of the metals in the muscles samples were below the most guidelines for human consumption.
Concentrations for heavy metals were lower than the guidelines in some organs and were higher than that in the other organs studied. The observed concentrations do not pose health problems as these organs are not used for human consumption.

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Growth performance, carcass composition, and immunophysiological indices in juvenile great sturgeon (Huso huso) fed on commercial prebiotic Immunoster (IS) were investigated. After a four-week acclimatization period, 270 great sturgeon juveniles weighing 95.68 ± 10.05 g were randomly distributed into 9 fiberglass tanks in three replicates and kept at a density of 30 fish per tank for a period of 8 weeks at water temperature 20.55 ± 5.11^ºC and dissolved oxygen 6.73 ± 0.35 mg L^-1. IS was added at two levels of 1% and 3% to the basal diet in place of cellulose. At the end of the trial, blood sampling and carcass analysis were conducted. Weight, length, body weight increase (BWI), specific growth rate (SGR), feed conversion ratio (FCR), protein efficiency ratio (PER) and condition factor (CF) were significantly affected by IS 3% compared with IS 1% and the control (P<0.05). There was significant difference (P<0.05) in crude protein of carcass between the experimental groups. Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) showed significantly higher levels in experimental treatments compared with the control (P<0.05). Immunoglobulin M (IgM) level and lysozyme activity in IS 1% group were higher than the control group. It can be concluded that IS can enhance growth performance and improve some immunophysiological indices of great sturgeon.

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The Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) is considered as an endemic sturgeon of the south part of the Caspian Sea and provides the highest Iranian caviar production. Due to overfishing, degradation of the rivers conditions of the natural reproductive habitats, the fish stocks is decreasing. The immature breeders do not response to hormonal therapy at the sturgeon hatcheries as most having PI (above 10) and large numbers of breeders caught and transported to the hatcheries were unable to reproduce. This study was attempted to find the effect of LHRHa implantation on oocytes maturation and spawning of Persian sturgeon. Broodstocks were caught from the southeast region of the Caspian Sea. The selected female broodstocks (PI>10) ranged in size from 24.0 to 37.5 kg were implanted with LHRHa cholesterol pellets at concentrations of 0 μg/kg (control), and treatments of 10, 15  and 20 μg/ kg (in three replicates. The results from this study indicated that females treated with LHRHa hormone implantation at 10, 15, 20 µg per kg body weight reached final maturation. These results were observed for all fish from treatment numbers 2 (15 μg/ kg) and 3 (20 μg/kg), however only one fish reached final maturation in treatment 1(10 μg/ kg). The current implantation of LHRHa was able to enhance breeders with PI above 10 to final maturation which under normal condition at sturgeon’s hatcheries this is not possible. The results suggested that final maturation can be achieved that lead to high fertilization (78.33% ±13.87, 68.33% ±4.16 in treatment 2 and 3, respectively) and hatching rates (85.3% ±9.07, 68.33% ±7.64 in treatment 2 and 3, respectively) and also total larvae production. Thus, the information from this study is very useful for artificial propagation of not-fully-matured females of Persian sturgeon at Sturgeon hatcheries especially in Iran.

 

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The accumulation of heavy metals Pb and Cd in the mangrove, Avicennia marina, was studied on the southern coast of Iran, particularly on and near Qeshm Island in the Persian Gulf. The samples were collected from 7 stations which they were analyzed by flame Atomic absorption spectrophotometer after chemical digestion. Maximum Pb and Cd in leaves are (34.50, 3.52 ppm) and minimum of them are in stems (2.00, 0.05 ppm) and the accumulation of metals in leaves is more than stems.  The different between monitored stations and accumulation of metals in tissues (P≥0.01) was not significant and there was no significant relationship between the leaves and stems of metals concentration (P≥0.05) but it was significant relationship between concentration of Pb and Cd in leaf tissue and stem tissue alone. (P<0.05). After entering these metals to food chain, are accumulated in human body and this matter may cause some disease by receiving metals more than provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of lead and cadmium, in adults which in 0.025 and 0.007 mg/kg body weight with standards ENHIS.

 

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The aim of the present study was to evaluate the impacts of diets supplemented with different lipid sources on growth performance, body composition, fatty acid profile, and hepatic antioxidant enzyme activity of juvenile black sea bream, Acanthopagrus schlegeli (initial mean weight, 1.1±0.02g). Four isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets were formulated with either fish oil (FO), soybean oil (SO), linseed oil (LO) or a mixture of SO and LO (SO+LO). The results showed that survival, weight gain, feed efficiency and protein efficiency ratios of black sea bream were not affected by dietary lipid sources (p>0.05). Liver and muscle of fish fed the SO diet had high concentration of linoleic acid, while those of fish fed the LO diet were high in linolenic acid. Liver and muscle of fish fed the FO diet had significantly (p<0.05) higher levels of eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, compared to fishes fed the SO and LO diets. Superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase enzymes activities in liver of black sea bream were not influenced by dietary lipid sources. Our findings suggest that SO and/or LO can be used as a substitute for FO in black sea bream diets without adverse effects on growth performance and antioxidant enzyme activity, when the essential fatty acid requirements are present in diets for black sea bream.

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Age, growth and reproduction were investigated for Chondrostoma regium, collected monthly (November 2007- August 2008) from the Dimeh Spring region, Zayandeh Roud River, Iran. The maximum age of collected female and male fish were estimated based on scale increments as five and four years respectively. Von Bertalanffy growth equations were calculated as L_t=246[1-e^(-0.206(t-0.034))], W_t=163.29〖[1-e^(-0.206(t-0.034))]〗^2.77 for females and L_t=253.1[1-e^(-0.206(t-0.175))], W_t=188.25〖[1-e^(-0.206(t-0.175))]〗^2.99 for males. Size ranges of the male and female specimens were almost similar. The fork length range for females was 10.5-18.0 cm and 10.7-19.7 cm for males and the weight range was 15.7-85.4 g in females, and 14.5-88.5 g in males. The female-male ratio was 1.8:1 (p<0.05), and for both sexes gonadal development and sexual maturity occurred in the second year of their life. Length-weight relationships revealed isometric growth pattern for males and a negative allometric growth for females. Monthly data of Gonadosomatic Index, and ovary condition suggested that spawning occurred during May and June. The mean absolute and relative fecundity was calculated as 2429±1512 (eggs/female) and 78.118.7 (egg/g), respectively, and fecundity was significantly correlated with both body weight (r2=0.90) and fork length and (r2=0.84).

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Paclitaxel is a current standard chemotherapeutic drug for ovarian cancer with several side effects. Recurrences of drug resistant clones have been considered the serious problem in the failure of chemotherapy. Medicinal marine natural products have been intensively proposed as diverse chemotherapeutic agents. Therefore there is an affinity to find efficient modality to overwhelm ovarian cancer chemo resistance complication. Here we examine whether brittle star extract as marine echinoderm natural resources can remarkably improve the cytotoxicity of paclitaxel in human ovarian cancer. MTT (dimethyl thiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) assay, PI (Propodium Iodide) assay, DAPI (4', 6-diamidino-2-phenylindole) staining, Acridine orange staining, caspase-3 and caspase-9 were performed to investigate cytotoxic effect. We found that a combination of sub-toxic concentrations of brittle star methanolic extract (lower than IC₅₀) can significantly enhance ovarian cell growth inhibition and intrinsic apoptosis pathways induced by paclitaxel. Consequently a combination of paclitaxel and brittle star extract may offer novel innovative strategies for ovarian cancer chemotherapy.

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Seasonal samplings were conducted over a year to study population dynamic of Carasobarbus luteus in Shadegan Wetland. Samples were collected from five sampling stations in Shadegan Wetland (Salmane, Rogabe, Khoroosi, Mahshahr and Atish) from April 2014 to March 2015. From total number of 1608 samples, 276 individuals were male and 1332 individuals were female. Length-weight relationship was W=0.013L^3.0124 (R²=0.92) for males; and W=0.0136L^3.0117 (R²=0.91) for females, showing an isometric growth pattern. Condition factor (K) was calculated to be 1.308±0.15 and 1.368±0.17 for the males and females, respectively, showing significant difference between the genders (p<0.05). Also, the results show that this species spawns in April-July with a long spawning period and sexual dormant period in autumn to early winter. Mean length at maturation was 161 and 174 mm for males and females specimens; whereas, weight of matured fish was 60 and 80 g for the males and females, respectively. Growth indices including L_∞, growth coefficient and t₀ were 305 and 301 mm, 0.67 and 0.55 per year and 0.23 and 0.29 for the males and females, respectively. Natural mortality, fishing mortality, total mortality, Munro Ф' and coefficient of exploitation were 1.22 and 1.02 per year, 1.61 and 1.45 per year, 2.83 and 2.47 per year, 2.79 and 2.72, and 0.57 and.59, respectively for the males and females. 

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Skin cancer has been reported as a contemporary malignant cancer. Here, anti-cancer effects of sea cucumber extract (SCE) from Holothuria arenicola have been examined on melanoma cells and compared with imidazole carboxamide (Dacarbazine) as a chemotherapy medication against melanoma and Hodgkin's lymphoma. MTT assay and morphological analysis were performed to evaluate cytotoxic effects of H. arenicola extract. Also, several methods were exerted to detect cell dying by SCE and imidazole carboxamide. The MTT assay showed that B16F10 cells proliferation was blocked by SCE (IC₅₀=31µg mlml^-1) and imidazole carboxamide (IC₅₀=1600 µg mlml^-1) in a dose and time dependent manner. Apoptosis induction yield treatment occurred at IC₅₀ concentration of SCE and imidazole carboxamide using DAPI staining, Acridine orange/Propodium iodide, PI flow cytometry and annexin/PI assay. The caspase colorimetric kit indicated that SCE and imidazole carboxamide could induce apoptosis through an intrinsic pathway. Collectively, our findings suggested that the methanolic SCE has more efficient cytotoxicity efficiency compared to imidazole carboxamide. Therefore, SCE may be considered as a futuristic marine natural product regarding prevention or treatment of melanoma malignancy.

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The Length-Weight Relationship (LWR) and condition factors (CF) of 10441 the oriental river prawn Macrobrachium nipponense collected from Anzali lagoon from March to December 2015 were studied. Length, weight and other external features of all specimens were measured. The Total length and body weight of M. nipponense ranged from 12.3-97 mm and 0.1-11.7 g respectively. A strong positive relationship was observed between the shrimp length and weight in both sexes (r= 0.95). There were significant differences in the condition factors of males and females (p < 0.05). The lowest CF value was observed in station 1 (CF= 1.28 ± 0.04) and the highest in station 2 (CF= 1.38 ± 0.34). In this study the regression coefficient (b) was lower than 3.0 for females and 3 for males, and combined sexes which was reflecting allometric growth of the M. nipponense.

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The present paper aims to examine the effects of dietary incorporation of Gracillaria arcuata extract (GE) on growth conduct and some blood biochemical parameters (Cholesterol (CHO), triglyceride (TG), total protein (TP) and glucose (GLU)) of the grey mullet, Mugil cephalus. Four experimental regimens were considered by including GE at the concentration of 0, 5, 10 and 15 mg kg⁻¹diet (GE0, GE5, GE10 and GE15 respectively). Each regimen was allocated randomly to three identical groups of fish (n=10 in each tank) with an introductory average weight of roughly 14.95g. Upon a 60 day feeding trial, fish fed with GE10 and GE15 diet had a considerable (p<0.05) final weight increase (FW), food intake (VFI), weight gain (WG), protein efficiency ratio (PER), lipid efficiency ratio (LER) and specific growth rate (SGR) compared with control group. While, there were no significant difference in FW, WG and LER among fish fed with GE5 diet and fish fed GE0 diet (p>0.05). No considerable difference, in terms of survival rate, was not shown between all of experimental treatments (p>0.05). The highest level of serum total protein was seen in fish on the GE15 diet (p<0.05). Fish fed GE10 and GE15 diets had lower Glucose, triglyceride and cholesterol concentrations than did fish fed GE0 and GE5 diet (p<0.05). The outcomes implied that dietary inclusion of G. arcuata extract caused positive influences on growth performance, feed utilization and biochemical responses in M. cephalus.

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This study was carried out to develop a practical guide to identify species of fish larvae in the coastal waters of the Caspian Sea-Golestan Province. A total of 18 sample sites in the Caspian Sea and 6 sampling sites in the Gorgan Bay were sampled monthly from March to September 2015. The findings showed most of the fish larvae belonged to the postflexion and transitional stages. Some morphological and meristic characteristics of fish larvae were measured. Fish larvae were represented by 5 genera including: Atherina caspia (Eichwald, 1838), Rutilus caspicus (Jakowlew 1870), Rutilus kutum (Kamensky, 1901), Cyprinus carpio (Linnaeus, 1758), Chelon saliens (Risso, 1810), Chelon aurata (Risso, 1810) and Gambusia holbrooki (Girard, 1859). The results showed C. carpio, R. caspicus, and R. kutum were separated based on the pigment patterns on their body. While R. caspicus and R. kutum were discerned by the number of pre-anal myomers. Chelon sp. could be differentiated by a different pigment pattern, as well as some morphometric characters including eye diameter, body depth, and head length. Additionally, identifying characteristics for A. caspia and G. holbrooki are described. The results of this study revealed that in contrast to the current perception, the analysis of the morphometric variations of Chelon sp., Rutilus sp., and C. carpio fry could be used for their identification.

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Marine saponins are naturally glycosides compounds which possess important biomedical properties such as anti-cancer, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. Nevertheless, no systematic studies on the anti-inflammatory potential of brittle star saponin and its underlying mechanisms have been reported. In this study, Ophiocoma erinaceus extracted saponin was investigated for its in vitro anti-inflammatory capacity. The antioxidant capacity of extracted saponin has evaluated using anion superoxide scavenging assay. Further, the anti-inflammatory effect of brittle star saponin on the production of inflammatory cytokines in THP-1/M cells has evaluated. Molecular mechanisms inhibitory effects of brittle star saponin were assessed by analyzing the expression of inflammatory mediators at transcriptional level. The results showed scavenging properties of extracted saponin against superoxide anion radical and demonstrated that brittle star saponin dose-dependently attenuated the release of inflammatory mediators such as NO, TNF-α, and COX-2, Real Time-PCR analysis elucidated that the anti-inflammatory action of brittle star saponin is correlated with its inhibitory effect on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced TNF-α and COX-2 mRNA expression in THP-1/M cells. The results have been showed, intensely afford the anti-inflammatory combined with its antioxidant potential of marine saponin extracted from brittle star.

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The antimicrobial activity of brown alga methanol, ethyl acetate, hexane, and chloroform extracts on gram positive and gram negative bacteria, and fungi was evaluated by using nutrient broth macro dilution test. Sargassum glaucescense was collected around the coastal area of Chabahar (south of Iran) the protected marine area of the Oman Sea in April and May 2015. Six pathogenic organisms including; Enterococcus faecium ATCC 51299, Streptococcus mutans ATCC 35668, Shigella boydii ATCC 25923, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 13883, Salmonella enteritidi PTCC, 1709, Candida albicans ATCC 10231 and Aspergillus fumigatus PTCC 5009 were investigated by the broth dilution method. Methanolic extract of six strains showed good activity amongst eight strains. Hexane extract, after methanolic extract has a good effect on the antimicrobial activity against five strains. All bacterial strains in this survey showed resistance against ethyl acetate and chloroformic extracts. S. glaucescens using four various  solutions extracts against eight different human pathogens showed an important antimicrobial and antifungal activity. However, more investigation has to be done on separation, purification and detection of the active ingredients in order to recognize their antifungal and antifungal activity.

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This study was carried out to investigate the effects of enriched Artemia with selenium nanoparticles on growth and survival rates and biochemical factors in guppy Poecilia reticulata larvae over a six-week period. Guppy larvae with a mean weight of 33.55 mg in three treatments and one control group (each with three replicates) were fed with Artemia franciscana enriched with 5, 10, and 50 mg L^-1 selenium nanoparticles. In terms of growth indices, significant differences were observed among treatments in length increment, weight gain, specific growth rate and survival rate (p<0.05). There was no significant difference in condition factor (p>0.05). Regarding biochemical factors, significant differences were observed between treatments. Artemia - fed treatments enriched with 5 and 10 mg of selenium nanoparticles (treatment 1 and 2) showed the lowest and in the treatment fed with Artemia - enriched 50 mg nanoparticles (treatment 3) showed the highest levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, creatinine phosphokinase and lactate dehydrogenase. The highest total protein content was observed in treatment 2, which was significantly different from the other treatments (p<0.05). Overall, if the goal of using selenium-enriched Artemia in fish larval diet is to increase survival and growth rate and improve biochemical indices, the use of selenium nanoparticles at the levels of 5 and 10 mg L^-1 is appropriate for enriching Artemia to feed the fish larvae.

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Food safety standards are one of the major non-tariff barriers of global trade. We investigate their effects on fish international trade patterns, especially for the developing countries. The main objective of this study is to investigate the role of mercury standards on Iran’s fish exports. We utilize the gravity model  analysis based on balanced panel data model, covering eight importing countries over the 2006-2015 period. The estimated coefficient of mercury standard supports the hypothesis that fish safety standards are one of the important factors affecting fish exports. Moreover, regulation similarity between countries could increase fish trade. Other explanatory variables of geographical distance between countries, trade agreement between countries and real exchange rates also have a significant effect on fishery product exports. The results indicate that Iran’s fish exports are negatively correlated with mercury standards of importers. As a result, adapting fisheries product standards and producing with the methods to deal with mercury standard imposed by importing countries is crucial for increasing Iran’s fish exports.

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Diatoms have been recognized as source of important and applicable ingredients such as pigments and essential lipids. In this study, the effects of nitrogen and silicate changes accomplished by salt stress were investigated to analysis the chl a and chl c₁+c₂ contents, specific growth rate, total lipid percentage and fatty acid composition of Navicula sp. Samples were collected using by plankton net (30-micron pores) in spring 2019, from 6 stations in the Persian Gulf, Iran. In this study, samples were cultured under salt stress (control, 20ppt and 45ppt) and nutrients fluctuation (control: N: 0.5 mg, Si:0.3 mg, high nutrient culture: N:0.9 mg, Si:4.5 mg and without nutrient culture). There was a considerable decrease in dry weight and maximum growth rate under 45ppt salt treatment without silicate. The amount of chl a was not significantly changed under various treatments. The highest level of chl c₁+c₂ was related to 20ppt with nitrate (3.05 mg L^-1) and the lowest value was 0.38 mg L^-1 for 20ppt with silicate treatment. The highest level of total lipid content was obtained at 45ppt without silicate. Lipid composition analysis under 45ppt without silicate showed a significant increase (2.07 times compared to control) of palmitoleic acid (C16:1n-7) and trace amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids were detected. Based on these results, it could be suggested that salt stress without silicate has an important effect to accumulate valuable lipids in Navicula sp. so that, they could be useful in medical and bioenergy applications.