Masculinization of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) by immersion in androgens
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Abstract
The use of all-male populations increases the efficiency and feasibility of tilapia aquaculture. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of a short-term immersion procedure for masculinizing Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Two synthetic androgens were evaluated: 17α-methyldihydrotestosterone (MDHT) and 17α-methyltestosterone (MT). Exposure (3 h) on 10 and again on 13 days post-fertilization to MDHT at 500 μg/1 successfully masculinized fry in all experiments, resulting in 100, 94 and 83 ± 2% males in Experiments 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Immersions in MDHT or MT at 100 μg/1 resulted in significantly skewed sex ratios in Experiments 1 and 3 (MT resulted in 73 and 83 ± 3% males; and MDHT resulted in 72 and 91 ± 1% males) but not in Experiment 2. Immersion in MT at 500 μg/1 only caused masculinization in Experiment 3. Although further research and refinement is needed, immersion of Nile tilapia in MDHT may provide a practical alternative to the use of steroid-treated feed. Furthermore, when compared with current techniques for steroid-induced sex inversion of tilapia, short-term immersion reduces the period of time that workers are exposed to anabolic steroids.
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Masculinization of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) by immersion in androgens |
| Series title | Aquaculture |
| DOI | 10.1016/S0044-8486(99)00136-2 |
| Volume | 178 |
| Issue | 3-4 |
| Year Published | 1999 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Elsevier |
| Contributing office(s) | Western Fisheries Research Center |
| Description | 9 p. |
| First page | 349 |
| Last page | 357 |