Papel de las actividades superóxido dismutasa y catalasa en la ...

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
reason, once aqueous and ethanolic extracts were assayed in vitro, oral administration of
whole alga cells was performed. In fish, as in other aquatic organisms, administration of
whole microorganisms has focused mainly on bacterial species, such as probiotics
(Verschuere et al., 2000; Nikoskelainen et al., 2001; Irianto and Austin, 2003; Salinas et
al., 2005; Balcázar et al., 2006; Díaz-Rosales et al., 2006; Salinas et al., 2006), but studies
about whole algae are still very scarce. On the other hand, P. cruentum acumulates large
amounts of lipids, specially arachidonic acid and noticeable amounts of
eicosapentaenoic acid (Kinsella et al., 1990; Koven et al., 2001); carbohydrates (Fujiki et
al., 1992; Santarém et al., 1997; Bagni et al., 2000; Morris et al., 2000; Esteban et al.,
2001; Jeney and Jeney, 2002; Cook et al., 2003; Couso et al., 2003; Castro et al., 2004;
Bagni et al., 2005; Kumar et al., 2005); carotenes (Tachinaba et al., 1997; Amar et al.,
2004); vitamins (Hardie et al., 1990, 1991; Ortuño et al., 1999; Jeney and Jeney, 2002).
Due to the fact that this alga contains different immunostimulant substances, its use
could generate a more general immune response as has been proposed for other
microorganisms such as yeasts (Ortuño et al., 2002; Rodríguez et al., 2003).
Thus, three groups of sole specimens received daily for four weeks one of the
different diets assayed on a daily basis: commercial diet supplemented with lyophilized
alga, diet consisting on non-supplemented commercial diet (control group) or diet
composed of commercial diet containing immunostimulant, Sanostim. Besides, to
evaluate the possible synergic effect of immunostimulant with a vaccine, two weeks
after the beginning of the feeding trial, a group of fish per treatment were
intraperitoneally inoculated with a bacterin of P. damselae subsp. piscicida, a formalinkilled
aqueous vaccine. Results obtained show that after four weeks of algal
administration, the superoxide anion production increases in immunized fish. This
increase is statistically significant, not only compared to fish fed with normal diet, but
also compared to fish fed with commercial immunostimulant. The combined action of
immunostimulant and vaccine has been described by numerous authors, who concluded
that combination of vaccination and immunostimulant administration increases vaccine
potency (Jeney and Anderson, 1993; RØsrstad et al., 1993; Aakre et al., 1994; Sakai et al.,
1995; Baulny et al., 1996; Sakai, 1999).
102