Diurnal rhythms of plasma growth hormone, somatostatin, thyroid hormones, cortisol and glucose concentrations in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, during progressive food deprivation

The diurnal patterns of changes in plasma cortisol, growth hormone (GH), somatostatin‐14 (SRIF), thyroid hormones (L‐thyroxine, T4 and triiodo‐L‐thyronine, T3) and glucose were investigated in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, both during single meal‐feeding and during a progressive fast of 13 weeks. All measured variables exhibited a diurnal pattern in fed rainbow trout, most of which appeared to be correlated with the time of feeding (30–60 min after the onset of light), while additional changes, associated with the scotophase were also found for cortisol. Although fasting had no affect on mean daily plasma cortisol or SRIF concentrations, there was a progressive increase in mean daily plasma GH concentrations and a progressive decrease in mean daily plasma thyroid hormone and glucose concentrations associated with fasting. However, for GH, significant changes were not evident until week 10 of the fast. In addition, fasting appeared to phase‐shift the diurnal patterns of plasma GH, cortisol and glucose concentrations; the consequence of such a shift is that conclusions as to the effects of fasting, if based on a single time of sampling, may be flawed.