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Estimating Recent Growth Rates of Atlantic Salmon Smolts Using RNA‐DNA Ratios from Nonlethally Sampled Tissues
Author(s) -
MacLean Sharon A.,
Caldarone Elaine M.,
St. OngeBurns Jeanne M.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
transactions of the american fisheries society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.696
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1548-8659
pISSN - 0002-8487
DOI - 10.1577/t07-254.1
Subject(s) - salmo , ethidium bromide , biology , nucleic acid , rna , growth rate , dna , muscle tissue , fishery , microbiology and biotechnology , anatomy , biochemistry , fish <actinopterygii> , gene , geometry , mathematics
Abstract Four tissues that can be removed nonlethally were evaluated for their effectiveness in estimating recent growth rates of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar smolts using RNA‐DNA ratios (R/Ds). Weight‐based growth rates were calculated for smolts reared in the laboratory for 4 weeks. Gill, muscle, scale, and caudal fin tissues were sampled to evaluate sampling ease during fieldwork, the quantity of RNA and DNA available for analysis, and the correlation of R/D with growth rate. Muscle provided adequate tissue for nucleic acid analysis, was strongly correlated with recent growth rates, and could be easily sampled in the field using a biopsy punch. Gill tissue did not provide adequate RNA for analysis with an ethidium‐bromide‐based microplate fluorometric assay, and R/Ds from scale and fin tissues were poorly correlated with growth rate.