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Alpha-Lipoic Acid Restored Antioxidant Capacity of Megalobrama amblycephala Inhibited by Ammonia
Xinyu Xiong1, Han Zhang1, Hui Xiao1
1Agricultural College, Huaiyin Institute of Technology, Huaian, People's Republic of China.
Insights
Dietary alpha-lipoic acid (α-LA) supplementation aids blunt snout bream recovery from ammonia stress. Supplemented fish showed restored antioxidant capacity and reduced oxidative damage, highlighting α-LA
Area of Science:
- Aquatic toxicology
- Fish physiology
- Nutritional biochemistry
Background:
- Ammonia is a common aquaculture stressor impacting fish health and antioxidant systems.
- Oxidative stress, indicated by reduced antioxidant enzymes and increased lipid peroxidation, is a key consequence of ammonia exposure.
- Alpha-lipoic acid (α-LA) is a potent antioxidant with potential to mitigate stress-induced damage.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of dietary alpha-lipoic acid (α-LA) in restoring antioxidant capacity of blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala) juveniles post-ammonia stress.
- To investigate the impact of varying α-LA dietary levels on key antioxidant enzyme activities and oxidative stress markers in fish gills and liver.
Main Methods:
- Blunt snout bream juveniles were exposed to three ammonia concentrations (0, 5.45, 10.89 mg/L) for 72 hours.
- Following stress, fish were fed diets supplemented with 0, 0.6, or 1.2 g/kg α-LA for 72 hours during a recovery period.
- Antioxidant enzyme activities (T-AOC, SOD, CAT, GPX) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content were measured in gill and liver tissues.
Main Results:
- Ammonia stress significantly reduced antioxidant enzyme activities and increased MDA levels, indicating oxidative damage.
- Dietary α-LA supplementation significantly enhanced T-AOC, SOD, and CAT activities in gills and liver compared to unsupplemented controls post-stress.
- MDA content was significantly reduced in α-LA supplemented groups, and enzyme activities showed a positive correlation with dietary α-LA levels.
Conclusions:
- Dietary alpha-lipoic acid effectively restores antioxidant capacity in blunt snout bream juveniles following ammonia-induced stress.
- α-LA supplementation mitigates oxidative stress by enhancing antioxidant enzyme function and reducing lipid peroxidation.
- The findings support the use of dietary α-LA as a nutritional strategy to improve fish resilience against ammonia toxicity in aquaculture.
Abstract:
This study assessed recovery of alpha-lipoic acid (α-LA) on antioxidant capacity of blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala) juveniles after ammonia stress. Around 270 healthy juveniles (13.7 ± 1.6 g) were separated into three groups and exposed to ammonium chloride solutions at 0 (G1), 5.45 (G2), and 10.89 mg/L (G3). Ammonia stress lasted for 72 h, then all fish were transferred to aerated tap water for the recovery experiment. Each group was further divided into three subgroups, which were fed with three diets with 0, 0.6, and 1.2 g/kg α-LA, respectively. The recovery experiment also lasted for 72 h. Gill and liver were collected after ammonia stress and recovery for the enzyme activities, histology, gene expression and correlation analysis. The results showed that total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) activities of liver and gill in G2 and G3 were significantly lower than G1 (p < 0.05) after 72 h of ammonia exposure; MDA contents in G2 and G3 were significantly higher than G1 (p < 0.05). Ammonium stress led to deterioration of cell nucleus and endoplasmic reticulum degradation. However, T-AOC, SOD and CAT activities of liver and gill were significantly higher than the control group at the 72nd hour after recovery with α-LA. MDA content was significantly lower than the control group (p < 0.05). Furthermore, SOD, CAT, T-AOC and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) activities in liver and gill were positively correlated with dietary α-LA levels. Overall, dietary α-LA supplement restored antioxidant ability of fish after ammonia stress.
