%A Yurong ZOU, Qinghui AI, Kangsen MAI %T Ontogenic development of digestive enzyme activities in juvenile soft-shelled turtle (Pelodiscus sinensis) under cultured conditions %0 Journal Article %D 2011 %J Front. Agric. China %J Frontiers of Agriculture in China %@ 1673-7334 %R 10.1007/s11703-011-1145-8 %P 624-630 %V 5 %N 4 %U {https://journal.hep.com.cn/fag/EN/10.1007/s11703-011-1145-8 %8 2011-12-05 %X

The study was conducted to investigate the ontogenic development of main digestive enzymes (pepsin, trypsin, amylase and lipase) activities in juvenile soft-shelled turtle (Pelodiscus sinensis) (initial mean bodyweight 3.63±0.27 g), in order to provide data on the digestive physiology of the juveniles during the first 30 days after hatching (DAH). The soft-shelled turtles were reared in an indoor rearing system, and fed with a formulated diet four times daily from 2 to 30 DAH. The results showed that the specific growth rate (SGR) of soft-shelled turtle ranged from 1.31 to 4.00%/d during the first 30 DAH. The specific activities of pepsin in stomachic segments, trypsin, amylase and lipase in intestinal segments first decreased slightly then increased to the maximum value (P<0.05). The specific activities of these enzymes were first detected on 1 DAH, and the lowest values were observed from 4 to 6 DAH, while the highest values were found from 22 to 30 DAH. Results of the present study indicated that the activities of digestive enzymes in soft-shelled turtle developed during the development and were well correlated with growth.