Calcium handling in Sparus auratus: effects of water and dietary calcium levels on mineral composition, cortisol and PTHrP levels

Juvenile gilthead sea bream (Sparus auratus L.; 10–40·g body mass) were acclimatized in the laboratory to full strength (34‰) or dilute (2.5‰) seawater and fed normal, calcium-sufficient or calcium-deficient diet for nine weeks. Mean growth rate, whole-body calcium and phosphorus content and accumulation rates were determined, as well as plasma levels of ionic and total calcium, cortisol and parathyroid hormone related protein (PTHrP; a hypercalcemic hormone in fish). When confronted with limited calcium access (low salinity and calcium-deficient diet), sea bream show growth arrest. Both plasma cortisol and PTHrP increase when calcium is limited in water or diet, and a positive relationship was found between plasma PTHrP and plasma ionic calcium (R2=0.29, N=18, P<0.05). Furthermore, a strong correlation was found between net calcium and phosphorus accumulation (R2=0.92, N=16, P<0.01) and between body mass and whole-body calcium (R2=0.84, N=25, P<0.01) and phosphorus (R2=0.88, N=24, P