Cortisol content of eggs and larvae of teleosts

The whole-animal content of the cortisol was measured in embryos and larvae of tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus), rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), ayu (Plecoglossus altivelis), milkfish (Chanos chanos), and yellowfin bream (Acanthropagrus latus) by radioimmunoassay following the validation of an extraction method. The total cortisol content in tilapia was 50.3 +/- 19.1 pg immediately following fertilization, then decreased abruptly and maintained a lower level of 10-17 pg until larval hatching; after hatching the cortisol content increased to 47.2 +/- 11.9 pg by the seventh day. Newly hatched rainbow trout had 60.3 +/- 6.4 pg cortisol and then increased their cortisol level slowly to 83.0 +/- 7.2 pg by the fifth day after hatching. Ayu larvae contained 5.2 pg cortisol immediately following hatching. On the other hand, pelagic milkfish revealed a much lower cortisol level, being undetectable from hatching until the second day and ranging from 0.4 to 3.7 pg from the third to seventh day after hatching. Yellowfin bream, demonstrating a similarity to milkfish, were not found to have any detectable cortisol from hatching until the third day, but presented 1.6-7.7 pg from the fifth to seventh day after hatching. The presence and clearance of cortisol during early development of fertilized eggs of tilapia suggest a maternal origin of the hormone. The amount of cortisol deposited in the larval body of tilapia increased after hatching from 25% to nearly 100% of the total cortisol in whole larvae, while that in the larval yolk sac decreased to an undetectable level, implying that the increased cortisol may be produced or secreted by the larva. The possible role of cortisol in larval development is discussed.