Animals (Nov 2021)

Effect of Essential Oils on the Oxyntopeptic Cells and Somatostatin and Ghrelin Immunoreactive Cells in the European Sea Bass (<i>Dicentrarchus labrax</i>) Gastric Mucosa

  • Maurizio Mazzoni,
  • Giulia Lattanzio,
  • Alessio Bonaldo,
  • Claudio Tagliavia,
  • Luca Parma,
  • Serena Busti,
  • Pier Paolo Gatta,
  • Nadia Bernardi,
  • Paolo Clavenzani

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11123401
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 12
p. 3401

Abstract

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The current work was designed to assess the effect of feed supplemented with essential oils (EOs) on the histological features in sea bass’s gastric mucosa. Fish were fed three diets: control diet (CTR), HERBAL MIX® made with natural EOs (N-EOs), or HERBAL MIX® made with artificial EOs obtained by synthesis (S-EOs) during a 117-day feeding trial. Thereafter, the oxyntopeptic cells (OPs) and the ghrelin (GHR) and somatostatin (SOM) enteroendocrine cells (EECs) in the gastric mucosa were evaluated. The Na+K+-ATPase antibody was used to label OPs, while, for the EECs, anti-SOM and anti-GHR antibody were used. The highest density of OP immunoreactive (IR) area was in the CTR group (0.66 mm2 ± 0.1). The OP-IR area was reduced in the N-EO diet group (0.22 mm2 ± 1; CTR vs. N-EOs, p 2 ± 1) a trend was observed. We observed an increase of the number of SOM-IR cells in the N-EO diet (15.6 ± 4.2) compared to that in the CTR (11.8 ± 3.7) (N-EOs vs. CTR; p < 0.05), but not in the S-EOs diet. These observations will provide a basis to advance current knowledge on the anatomy and digestive physiology of this species in relation to pro-heath feeds.

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