The role of exoskeleton exchange of the marine shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei in the elimination of excess metal present in the body

• Grant number: 23/09599-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: January 01, 2024
• End date: December 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - General Physiology
• Principal Investigator: Alessandra da Silva Augusto
• Grantee: Beatriz Leite Calixto Nascimento
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB-CLP). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus Experimental do Litoral Paulista. São Vicente , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing food production sectors and Litopenaeus vannamei is the most cultivated shrimp in the world. There are several environmental problems that can currently put biodiversity and aquaculture at risk, such as metals, microplastics and climate change. In this sense, cadmium is a metal that has been used intensively in electroplating, making batteries, paints, plastics and in the nuclear energy industry in addition to being a byproduct of other metals. Studies of our group have shown that real cadmium concentrations found in nature cause trade off in L. vannamei as 30% of mortality accompanied by high growth rate. In the present project, we will investigate whether the high growth rate is a strategy of this arthropod to eliminate excess cadmium through molting. The animals will be exposed to two cadmium concentrations (0.1 mg/L and 0.5 mg/L) or to filtered water free of the metal (control group) for 30 days. A mesh of physiological processes (metabolism, excretion, hepatosomatic index, type of oxidized energy substrate, osmoregulation, growth, intake rate and management) will be evaluated and the concentration of cadmium present in the exuviae will be quantified. The results of this work will contribute to the understanding of the effects of metals on a species of shrimp of worldwide economic interest.