Vertebral deformities in cultured red sea bream, Pagrus major, Temminck and Schlegel |
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| Authors: | M Hattori Y Sawada Y Takagi R Suzuki T Okada & H Kumai |
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| Institution: | Graduate School of Kinki University, Nara, Japan;Fisheries Laboratory Ohshima Experiment Station, Kinki University, Kushimoto, Japan;Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Japan;Fisheries Laboratory Shirahama Experiment Station, Kinki University, Shirahama, Japan |
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| Abstract: | Vertebral deformities were investigated in cultured red sea bream, Pagrus major. In the field, deformities in seedlings were categorized and their incidence was calculated. In the laboratory, the symptoms of major vertebral deformities were examined morphologically using radiographs and by making transparent skeletal specimens. The internal structure of deformed vertebrae was examined histologically. The shortened body condition had the highest incidence (0.9–8.3%) of all deformities in the seedlings. In individuals with the shortened body condition, the ratio of trunk and caudal part length to body height was smaller. These fish had skeletal anomalies in the vertebrae, mainly centrum defects (64.3%) or undersized centrums (25.2%). The specimens with centrum defects had a characteristic anomaly in the vertebrae, with plural pairs of neural and haemal spines on a single centrum. This anomaly was frequently observed in the posterior abdominal vertebrae. The internal skeletal structure of such abnormal centrums was basically the same as that of normal centrums. In all the specimens with undersized centrums, both the centrum length and diameter were shorter than normal except for the first and second centrum, and urostyle. |
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| Keywords: | red sea bream vertebrae deformity shortened body condition |
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