2025/09/02 by Muhammad Nouman Riaz, Muhammad Hafeez‐ur‐Rehman, Hamda Azmat +1 · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · Immunology and Microbiology · #Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth #Physiological and biochemical adaptations #Aquaculture disease management and microbiota
paper · doi:10.1111/jfb.70211
openalex publication_date 2025/09/02 · openalex created_date 2025/09/03 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
Environmental salinity affects the growth, survival rate and physiological functions of fish. In this study, the effects of salinity stress on Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Sauvage, 1878) fingerlings were examined over a 90-day period. After acclimatization, a total of 300 P. hypophthalmus fingerlings were randomly assigned into three replicates and divided into five treatment groups with salinity levels of 0‰, 6‰, 12‰, 18‰, and 24‰ and with a stocking density of 20 fish per aquarium. After 90 days, the final weight, weight gain, weight gain percentage and specific growth rate significantly (p < 0.0001) decreased with increasing salinity, while feed conversion ratio values increased. The viscerosomatic index and hepatosomatic index significantly (p < 0.0001) increased up to 12‰ salinity, then decreased. Survival rate differed significantly (p < 0.0001), with a maximum at 12‰ and a minimum at 24‰ salinity level. Moisture and ash content were significantly higher (p < 0.0001) at 18‰ and 24‰. Crude lipid and protein contents were significantly higher (p < 0.0001) at lower salinity levels. Haematological content was significantly higher (p < 0.0001) at 0‰, 6‰ and 12‰ salinity levels, then decreased. The values of globulin, albumin and total protein also declined significantly (p < 0.0001) with increasing salinity. Conversely, values of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase increased significantly (p < 0.0001) from 0‰ to 24‰. Total cholesterol, total glyceride and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were significantly higher (p < 0.0001) at 12‰ and lower at 24‰. Stress parameters, such as glucose and cortisol, and lipid peroxidation parameters, such as catalase, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase and malondialdehyde, increased significantly (p < 0.0001) as the salinity level increased. This study demonstrates that the optimal salinity level for the cultivation of P. hypophthalmus in inland saline groundwater is 12‰, which ensures the maximum survival rate.