Fish Health and Reproductive Biology
Department of Zoology
University of Johannesburg
South Africa

Contact
Prof. Ina (GM) Wagenaar
inaw@uj.ac.za
Phone: +2711 559-2441

Address
University of Johannesburg
Department of Zoology
Auckland Park
Johannesburg
2006
South Africa

Group description
The Fish Health and Reproductive Biology Research group strives to do high quality research on the cause-and effect relationship between toxicant exposure and the associated histopathological and reproductive effects in fish. The research approach includes both field surveys of wild fish inhabiting rivers and dams, as well as controlled laboratory exposure studies. The applied methodology involves a histology-based fish health assessment protocol that allows the identification of abnormalities on cellular level using light microscopy analysis applied to all majororgan systems including the identification of hepatic, renal, respiratory, cardiac and reproductive responses. Overthese years, the research group produced 20 MSc and 5 PhD graduates.

Main lines of research
• The effects of toxicants on the reproduction of fish, focusing on the analysis of sperm viability and motility using a novel CASA system based on open source software.
• Development of a protocol using reproductive indicators to monitor and assess the effect of organic and inorganic pollutants on reproduction.
• Sperm motility and testes histopathology as reproductive indicators of aquatic health in two freshwater fish species in the Limpopo Province South Africa.
• Preliminary study on fish health and reproduction in rivers feeding the Nandoni Dam with emphasis on pharmaceutical pollutants.

National: Research Projects as collaborator and co-worker (2007-2014):
Bornman MS, Barnhoorn IEJ, van Dyk JC, Genthe B, Pieterse GM. 2013. Edibility of selected freshwater fish from an urban impoundment. WRC Report No. K8/785, Pretoria. (1 MSc student).
W Vlok, PSO Fouché, CL Cook, V Wepener, GM Wagenaar. 2013. An assessment of the current distribution, biodiversity and health of the frogs of the Kruger National Park in relation to physical and chemical factors, WRC Project, No K5/1928.
Smit NJ; Wepener V; Vlok W; Wagenaar GM; Van Vuren JHJ. 2013. Conservation of tigerfish, Hydrocynus vittatus, in the Kruger National Park with the emphasis on with the emphasis on the establishment of management plans for the protection of its riverine habitat. WRC Report No K5/1922. (1 MSc student).
Bornman MS; Barnhoorn EJ; Genthe B; Van Vuren JHJ; Pieterse GM; Aneck-Hahn NH; van Dyk JC ; de Jager PC; Brink KA; Marchand MJ; Patrick SM; van Zijl MC. 2010. DDT for Malaria Control: Effects in indicators and health risk. Water Research commission. Report No. 1674/1/09. ISBN 978-1-77005-915-3. (1 PhD student).

Publication List
1. Marchand MJ, Pieterse GM and IEJ Barnhoorn. 2008. Sperm motility and testicular histology of two feral fish species from a currently DDT-sprayed area, South Africa. J. Appl. Ichthyol., 24:423-429. DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0426.2010.01558.x
2. Van Dyk JC and Pieterse GM and 2008. A histo-morphological study of the normal testis of an indicator species of estrogen-polluted waters in South Africa. J. Appl Ichthyol., 24:415-422. DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0426.2008.01127.x
3. Marchand MJ, Van Dyk JC, Pieterse GM and Barnhoorn. 2009. Histopathological alterations in the liver of the sharptooth catfish Clarias gariepinus from polluted aquatic systems in South Africa. Environ Toxicol.,24:133-147. DOI: 10.1002/tox.20397
4. Van Dyk JC, Marchand MJ, NJ Smit and Pieterse GM. 2009. A histology-based fish health assessment of four commercially and ecologically important fish species from the Okavango Panhandle. African Journal of Aquatic Science, 34(3):273-283. DOI: 10.2989/AJAS.2009.34.3.9.985
5. Van Dyk JC, Marchand MJ, Pieterse GM, Barnhoorn IEJ and Bornman MS. 2009. Histological changes in the gills of Clarias gariepinus (Teleostei: Clariidae) from a polluted aquatic urban aquatic system. African Journal of Aquatic Science, 34(3):239-247. DOI:10.2989/AJAS.2009.34.3.10.986
6. Gerber R, Smit NJ, Pieterse GM and D. Durholtz. 2009. Age estimation, growth and size at sexual maturity of tigerfish, (Hydrocynus vittatus), from the Okavango Delta, Botswana. African Journal of Aquatic Science, 34(3):239-247. DOI: 10.2989/AJAS.2009.34.3.5.981
7. Pieterse GM, Marchand, MJ, Van Dyk JC, Barnhoorn IEJ. 2010. Histopathological alterations in the testis and ovaries of the sharptooth catfish (Clarias gariepinus) in an urban nature reserve in South Africa. J. Appl Ichthyol., 26:289-293. DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0426.2010.01557.x
8. Marchand, MJ, Pieterse GM, Barnhoorn IEJ and Bornman MS. 2010. Sperm motility and testicular histology as reproductive indicators of two feral fish species from a currently DDT sprayed area, South Africa. J. Appl Ichthyol., 26:707-714. DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0426.2010.01558.x
9. Barnhoorn IEJ, Van Dyk JC, Pieterse GM and Bornman MS. 2010. Intersex in feral indigenous freshwaterOreochromis mossambicus, from various parts in the Luvuvhu River, Limpopo Province, South Africa, Ecotox. Environ Safe., 73(7): 1537-1542. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2010.07.026.
10. Marchand MJ, Van Dyk JC, Barnhoorn IEJ and Pieterse GM. 2010. A histology-based fish health assessment of two fish species from the Roodeplaat Dam, South Africa. Submitted to the African Journal of Aquatic Science in March 2010.
11. Marchand MJ, Van Dyk JC, Barnhoorn IEJ and Wagenaar GM. 2012. A histolopathological study of two indicator fish species inhabiting a hyper-eutrophic freshwater ecosystem: a baseline study. African Journal of Aquatic Science, 37(1): 39-48. DOI:10.2989/16085914.2011.636902
12. van Dyk JC, Cochrane MJ & Wagenaar GM. 2012. Liver histopathology in the Sharptooth catfish Clarias gariepinus as indicator of freshwater aquatic pollution. Chemosphere. 87:301-311. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2011.12.002
13. Wagenaar GM, Botha T and Barnhoorn IEJ. 2012. Histopathological assessment of gonadal tissue inClarias gariepinus form an eutrophic impoundment in South Africa.Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 28: 990 – 997.
14. Mokae LM, Wagenaar GM and Smit, NJ. 2013. Comparative histomorphological assessment of the testes of two Clarias species from the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Tissue and Cell, 45: 7-20. DOI: 10.1016/j.tice.2012.08.007
15. Tresise MM, Mokae MLL, Wagenaar GM, Van Dyk JC. 2014. A proposed liver needle core biopsy technique for the Sharptooth catfish Clarias gariepinus for use in fish health research. Journal of Fish Disease, 37(10): 931-934. DoP IF = 1.507; DOI:10.1111/jfd.12181