EUGENOL, MENTHOL AND BENZOCAINE AS ANESTHETICS AGENTS FOR CHEIRODON INTERRUPTUS (OSTARIOPHYSI: CHARACIDAE)

CLARA VERCELLINI; RAMIRO REARTE; IGNACIO GARCÍA; MIGUEL ANGEL AYALA; MARTIN MIGUEL MONTES

Congreso; REUNIÓN CONJUNTA SAIC SAB AAFE AACYTAL 2023; 2023

Anesthetics are commonly used to facilitate capture, handling, transport in aquaculture practices and research. There are many anesthetic agents used in fish. Benzocaine is an anesthetic frequently used in aquaculture. Eugenol and menthol are anesthetics essential oils which are increasing attention in sustainable aquaculture practices. Cheirodon interruptus (Jenyns, 1842) is a small native freshwater baitfish widely used in Argentina. The simplicity to obtain and their tolerance to handling makes them a suitable model for bioassays. However, there is limited literature on the anesthetic effects in C. interruptus. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the response of benzocaine, eugenol and menthol anesthetics effects in C. interruptus. A total of 165 adults of C. interruptus (standard length 40.6 ± 2.9 mm; body weight 1.31 ± 0.33 g, and age 1+) were collected from a natural stream of the Salado River basin, Argentina. The tests are carried out with water at a temperature of 21±1 °C, pH = 7.54, dissolved oxygen 7.93 mg/L, conductivity 602 µS.cm-1. The median time to induction and recovery from anesthesia (stage VI) depending on anesthetic agents were assessed with Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Results indicated that eugenol 20 mgL-1 , menthol 125 mgL-1 and benzocaine 80 mgL-1 meet the requirements for a good anesthetic for use in fish (induction time