The effect of dietary intake of vitamins C and E on the stress response of gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata L.)

High dietary doses of the antioxidant vitamins C and E were administered to gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata L.) in an attempt to reduce the stress response in specimens exposed to a multiple stress situation. Fish were fed four different diets for 6 weeks: a commercial feed containing 0·1 g vitamin C and 0·1 g vitamin E kg−1 acted as control diet, while experimental diets consisted of the same feed supplemented with 3 g vitamin C kg−1, 1·2 g vitamin E kg−1 or both 3 g vitamin C and 1·2 g vitamin E kg−1. After 2, 4 and 6 weeks fish were exposed to stressors typical of aquacultural practices, and serum cortisol levels, complement activity (measured by the alternative pathway), blood glucose level and respiratory burst activity of head-kidney leucocytes were evaluated. The results showed that all stress-induced increases in blood glucose concentration were lower in fish fed the vitamin C and/or E-supplemented diet than in fish fed the control diet after 2 weeks of treatment, although no other differences were found at the rest of the times. Cortisol levels increased in stressed fish and did not suffer depletion as a consequence of administering vitamins C and/or E as a supplement. The natural haemolytic complement activity was not affected by the stressors but enhanced in specimens fed vitamin-supplemented diets at week 6. The respiratory burst activity was depressed by the stressors in fish fed the control diet, although only after 6 weeks of treatment were the differences statistically significant. These results suggest that vitamins C and E are involved in the hypothalamic-sympathetic-chromaffin cell axis and also interfere in tertiary stress responses such as immunodepression, where they protect the leucocyte functions.