Alterations in Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus erythrometry as sensitive indicators of dietary fluoroquinolone antibiotic enrofloxacin toxicity

Ratnapriya Das; Thangapalam Jawahar Abraham; Arya Sen; Prasanna Kumar Patil

doi:10.17017/j.fish.1066

Ratnapriya Das Department of Aquatic Animal Health, West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Thangapalam Jawahar Abraham Department of Aquatic Animal Health, West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences, Kolkata, West Bengal, India https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0581-1307
Arya Sen Department of Aquatic Animal Health, West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Prasanna Kumar Patil Aquatic Animal Health and Environment Division, ICAR-Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17017/j.fish.1066

Keywords: aquaculture, biomarkers, cytotoxicity, fish erythrocytes, medicated feed

Abstract

The use of antibiotics in aquaculture poses significant health risks to fish and consumers. Adopting and validating a standard, non-lethal, and cost-effective method to monitor fish health is essential. This study investigated the impact of fluoroquinolone antibiotic enrofloxacin (ENF) on the erythrocyte cellular and nuclear morphometric anomalies in Oreochromis niloticus. Fish were fed graded doses of ENF at 0 mg, 10 mg, 30 mg, 50 mg and 100 mg kg biomass^–1 day^–1 for 15 consecutive days, followed by a 21-day post-dosing observation. The results revealed significant alterations in erythrocyte morphometric characteristics, such as major and minor axes, volume, surface area, cell to nucleus ratio, and surface area to volume ratio due to dietary ENF, indicating its cytotoxicity and perilous effects on fish erythrocytes. The nucleus was shrinking more significantly than the cell under treatment-induced stress. On day 15 of dosing, the surface area to volume ratio increased in the dosing groups, except for the 10× group, which represented an adaptive response in the fish to facilitate greater area for gas exchange to occur. However, the observed dose- and time-dependent erythro-morphometry was reversible once dosing was suspended. The results showed that fish erythrometric abnormalities, a relatively unexplored area of clinical science, can serve as important biomarkers or sensitive indicators of toxicity of veterinary medicinal products in assessing the physiological health status of cultured aquatic organisms.

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