Assessment of health status of air breathing fishes of North Bihar

Serum protein gel electrophoresis were used to study the status of few air breathing fishes namely Heteropneustes fossilis (Bloch.) and Clarias batrachus (Linn) of three wetlands viz. Chitragupta Mandir Chaur, Gamharia Chaur and Hardi Chaur of Supaul district in North Bihar (India). The physico-chemical parameters were also taken into consideration. The electrophorogram of the serum protein gel fractions revealed that number of protein fractions was decreased in the fishes of all the three test zones ranging from fraction 4 to 3 in Clarias batrachus as compared to normal. The total protein contents showed characteristic decline from 21.17 to 18.22 g/dL in Clarias batrachus while 24.10 to 20.45 g/dL in H. fossilis. The serum albumin increased from the normal but α₁ and α₂ globulin sharply decreased in Clarias batrachus. β and γ-globulin showed almost negligible band in control C. batrachus but in control H. fossilis, it has been reported only 0.57.