Table 3.
Histomorphology of the different intestine sections of European seabass fed the control or the blend diets using a quantitative analysis.
| Anterior Intestine | Mid Intestine | Posterior Intestine | Rectum | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CTRL | Blend | CTRL | Blend | CTRL | Blend | CTRL | Blend | |
| Cross-sectional perimeter (CSP, mm) | 14.3 ± 1.2 | 14.4 ± 1.0 | 11.4 ± 1.9 | 10.6 ± 1.5 | 10.6 ± 1.4 | 10.1 ± 1.7 | 13.7 ± 2.0 | 13.5 ± 2.0 |
| Absorption area (mm2) | 7.8 ± 1.1 | 8.2 ± 1.2 | 3.7 ± 1.0 | 3.1 ± 0.6 | 2.6 ± 0.6 | 2.7 ± 1.2 | 4.4 ± 1.1 | 4.09 ± 1.1 |
| Villi length (μm) | 1498.9 ± 184.3 | 1414.3 ± 127.8 | 837.1 ± 119.3 a | 724.6 ± 90.6 b | 580.6 ± 68.3 | 574.9 ± 66.1 | 939.8 ± 109.6 | 851.9 ± 107.7 |
| Villi length/CSP (μm/mm) | 104.9 ± 9.4 | 98.2 ± 9.0 | 74.8 ± 14.4 | 69.92 ± 12.9 | 55.1 ± 6.2 | 58.0 ± 7.6 | 69.7 ± 10.3 | 64.0 ± 9.9 |
| Microvilli height (μm) | 4.1 ± 0.5 | 4.2 ± 0.7 | 3.3 ± 0.5 | 3.3 ± 0.4 | 4.2 ± 0.9 | 4.5 ± 0.6 | 5.2 ± 0.8 | 5.9 ± 0.6 |
| Muscularis thickness (μm) | 101.8 ± 22.8 | 123.8 ± 26.8 | 128.1 ± 20.0 | 142.3 ± 20.6 | 117.5 ± 13.9 | 139.0 ± 33.4 | 253.9 ± 37.9 | 276.2 ± 65.0 |
| Submucosa width (μm) | 45.8 ± 5.0 | 51.6 ± 16.3 | 62.2 ± 12.4 b | 93.1 ± 15.5 a | 64.2 ± 9.3 | 81.0 ± 30.56 | 67.90 ± 12.54 | 77.14 ± 8.96 |
| Lamina propria width (μm) | 64.6 ± 9.0 b | 76.6 ± 9.0 a | 61.1 ± 8.2 b | 78.5 ± 17.3 a | 63.6 ± 14.6 | 67.3 ± 9.2 | 18.2 ± 5.4 | 19.5 ± 7.3 |
| Goblet cells (GC) | 2206.9 ± 652.8 | 2172.6 ± 580.6 | 2871.4 ± 705.7 a | 2010.6 ± 481.1 b | 3446.8 ± 1032.3 | 3322.7 ± 971.3 | 3656.8 ± 1395.5 | 3756.0 ± 1325.7 |
| Acid GC | 1901.9 ± 596.7 | 1864.6 ± 591.4 | 2810.9 ± 696.4 a | 1836.7 ± 523.9 b | 3347.0 ± 1040.3 | 3199.6 ± 1090.3 | 3475.4 ± 1386.4 | 3421.3 ± 1154.7 |
| Neutral GC | 305.0 ± 233.0 | 308.0 ± 170.3 | 60.5 ± 62.2 | 174.0 ± 194.2 | 99.8 ± 149.6 | 123.1 ± 160.6 | 181.4 ± 208.7 | 334.8 ± 359.4 |
| GC/absorption area (no. GC/mm2) | 306.7 ± 80.9 | 278.6 ± 97.0 | 789.5 ± 154.6 | 655.3 ± 129.1 | 1310.8 ± 221.4 | 1264.8 ± 256.1 | 827.9 ± 199.1 | 920.6 ± 225.1 |
| Acid GC/absorption area (no. AGC/mm2) | 260.8 ± 83.8 | 239.0 ± 96.5 | 775.1 ± 162.9 a | 599.6 ± 144.8 b | 1268.0 ± 199.1 | 1204.8 ± 278.0 | 784.2 ± 193.7 | 841.4 ± 200.5 |
| Neutral GC/absorption area (no. NGC/mm2) | 45.9 ± 24.1 | 39.6 ± 19.4 | 14.5 ± 10.4 | 55.7 ± 58.9 | 42.9 ± 71.1 | 60.0 ± 81.3 | 43.7 ± 46.8 | 79.3 ± 78.3 |
| Average area GC (μm2) | 30.7 ± 3.7 | 36.0 ± 9.0 | 36.3 ± 4.0 | 33.7 ± 7.8 | 54.5 ± 13.6 | 48.8 ± 6.9 | 58.1 ± 8.6 | 58.0 ± 13.5 |
| Total area GC (mm2) | 0.07 ± 0.02 | 0.08 ± 0.02 | 0.10 ± 0.02 a | 0.07 ± 0.02 b | 0.19 ± 0.08 | 0.16 ± 0.04 | 0.21 ± 0.07 | 0.20 ± 0.05 |
| Submucosa lymphoid cells | 64.5 ± 8.6 | 66.7 ± 8.0 | 69.4 ± 9.5 b | 102.4 ± 10.3 a | 67.7 ± 6.6 | 66.1 ± 4.8 | 177.1 ± 19.4 b | 224.2 ± 32.7 a |
| Submucosa granulocytes | 23.7 ± 2.9 b | 36.6 ± 5.2 a | 26.0 ± 2.4 b | 37.6 ± 3.9 a | 15.2 ± 2.1 b | 20.5 ± 1.3 a | 13.6 ± 1.2 b | 19.2 ± 1.4 a |
| Lamina propria lymphoid cells | 61.1 ± 7.7 | 54.5 ± 8.1 | 45.9 ± 4.6 b | 68.5 ± 8.0 a | 33.9 ± 2.7 | 34.6 ± 3.5 | 21.9 ± 2.7 | 24.7 ± 2.8 |
| Lamina propria granulocytes | 14.8 ± 1.7 | 16.34 ± 2.0 | 13.5 ± 1.4 | 15.8 ± 2.6 | 5.5 ± 0.4 | 5.7 ± 0.7 | 3.4 ± 0.6 | 3.7 ± 0.6 |
| PCNA+ cells total area (mm2) | 0.6 ± 0.2 | 0.6 ± 0.2 | 0.1 ± 0.1 | 0.2 ± 0.1 | 0.1 ± 0.1 | 0.2 ± 0.1 | 0.3 ± 0.1 | 0.3 ± 0.1 |
| PCNA+ cells total area/absorption area (%) | 8.0 ± 2.5 | 7.0 ± 2.5 | 3.7 ± 0.8 b | 7.1 ± 3.6 a | 5.5 ± 2.9 | 5.8 ± 1.5 | 6.1 ± 3.0 | 6.9 ± 1.8 |
CTRL – fish fed the control diet, Blend – fish fed the blend diet. Values presented as mean ± SD (n = 10 samples per dietary treatment), based on quantitative analysis. Independent samples t-test was employed to understand the significant differences between the study groups. Different letters denote significant differences between dietary treatments within each intestinal section. PCNA, Proliferating cell nuclear antigen.