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  2. First evidence of the possible implication of the 11-deoxycorticosterone (DOC) in immune activity of Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis, L.): comparison with cortisol

First evidence of the possible implication of the 11-deoxycorticosterone (DOC) in immune activity of Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis, L.): comparison with cortisol

  • Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol. 2013 Jun;165(2):149-58. doi: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2013.02.025.
Cédric Mathieu 1 Sylvain Milla S N M Mandiki Jessica Douxfils Caroline Douny Marie-Louise Scippo Edwin De Pauw Patrick Kestemont
Affiliations

Affiliation

  • 1 Research Unit in Environmental and Evolutionary Biology (URBE), University of Namur (FUNDP), Rue de Bruxelles 61, B-5000 Namur, Belgium. cedric.mathieu@fundp.ac.be
Abstract

Cortisol, the main corticosteroid in fish, is frequently described as a modulator of fish immune system. Moreover, 11-deoxycorticosterone (DOC) was shown to bind and transcriptionally activate the Mineralocorticoid Receptor and may act as a mineralocorticoid in fish. Immune modulations induced by intraperitoneal injections of these two corticosteroids were assessed in Eurasian perch juveniles. Cortisol and DOC were injected at 0.8 mg kg(-1) and 0.08 mg kg(-1) body weight respectively. Cortisol increased plasma lysozyme activity 72 h post-injection, C-type lysozyme expression in spleen from 1 to 72 h post-injection, and favoured blood neutrophils at the expense of a mixture of lymphocytes and thrombocytes. Moreover, 6 h after injection, cortisol reduced expression levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF-α in spleen. DOC had no effects on the immune variables measured in plasma, but increased expression levels of C-type lysozyme and apolipoprotein A1 mRNA in both gills and spleen. Meanwhile, DOC stimulated its putative signalling pathway by increasing expression of Mineralocorticoid Receptor and 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase-2 in spleen. These results confirmed the role of cortisol as an innate, short term immune stimulator. For the first time, DOC is described as a possible immune stimulator in fish.

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