Projected climate change scenarios and their effects on the nutritional quality of P. segnis muscle: Macromolecular and fatty acid transformations

This work presents the effects of increasing temperature on the physiological changes of Portunus segnis in natural environments (in situ) and under controlled conditions (in vivo). Following the increase in temperature from 19°C to 30°C and 40°C, physicochemical analyses showed that the percentages of oxygen consumption increased and the quantities of dissolved oxygen decreased. Under the effect of natural and controlled thermal stresses (19°C, 30°C and 40°C), the water and ash contents in the muscles of blue crabs decreased with increasing temperature. For protein, glycogen and lipid contents, a decrease was observed with increasing water temperature. Saturated fatty acids (SFAs) significantly increased compared to polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), mainly eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which gradually decreased with increasing temperature. These results highlight the need to closely monitor climate change, particularly temperature increases, due to their potential impact on the structure and stability of biological macromolecules. Such alteration can compromise essential physiological functions of aquatic organisms. These findings open new avenues for future research aimed at better understanding adaptation and resilience mechanisms to thermal stress in a warming climate.