Do fathead minnows, Pimephales promelas Rafinesque, alter their club cell investment in responses to variable risk of infection from Saprolegnia?

Abstract

Fish in the Superorder Ostariophysi possess large epidermal club cells that release chemical cues warning nearby conspecifics of danger. Despite the long-held assumption that such club cells evolved under the selective force of predation, recent studies demonstrated that predation has no effect on club cell investment. Rather, club cells have an immune function and cell production may be stimulated by skin-penetrating pathogens and parasites. The current work investigates whether fathead minnows, Pimephales promelas, alter their club cell characteristics based on variation in infection risk. In a 2 × 3 design, we exposed minnows to infective cysts of two oomycete species (Saprolegnia ferax and S. parasitica) at three different concentrations (2, 20 or 200 cysts L(-1)). Club cell characteristics (number and size) were quantified 12 days after exposure. Saprolegnia parasitica is thought to be more pathogenic than S. ferax, hence we predicted greater club cell investment and a larger turnover rate of cells by minnows exposed to S. parasitica than S. ferax. We also predicted that minnows exposed to higher numbers of cysts should invest more in club cells and have a higher turnover rate of cells. We found no difference in club cell density or size between fish exposed to the two Saprolegnia species; however, fish exposed to high concentrations of pathogens had smaller club cells than those exposed to low concentrations, indicating a higher rate of turnover of cells in the epidermis.