Cellular Changes in Liver Tissue of Adult Common Sole (Solea solea L. 1758) in the Aegean Sea, Turkey

ABSTRACT Engin, S.; Gurkan, S., and Taskavak, E., 2024. Cellular changes in liver tissue of adult common sole (Solea solea L. 1758) in the Aegean Sea, Turkey. Journal of Coastal Research, 40(4), 740–748. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. In this study, cellular changes and biological indices in the liver tissue of the common sole, Solea solea (L. 1758), are investigated based on sex, size groups, and seasons. The specimens used in the study were obtained monthly between 2019 and 2020 from commercial trawlers and small scale–fishing operations in the fishing grounds of Izmir Bay, the Aegean Sea coast of Turkey. A total of 240 common sole fish (166 female, 66 male, 8 immature) were used in this study. In the obtained specimens, the male: female ratio was determined as 0.39:1 (χ2 = 33.19; p > 0.05), whereas the length–weight relationship was calculated as W = 0.009TL2.97 (R2 = 0.86) for females and W = 0.009TL3.27 (R2 = 0.91) for males. Four size groups (19–22, 23–26, 27–30, >30cm) were established in the study. Significant histological changes, such as macrovesicular steatosis degenerations, were observed in the liver tissue of the examined fish, especially in larger size groups. Females exhibited higher levels of condition and hepatosomatic index values compared with males, possibly because they are more susceptible to liver degeneration. During the summer months, liver degeneration is more striking due to hunger among common soles. Based on these results, 36.7% of the specimens caught from fishing grounds in Izmir Bay have normal liver tissues, whereas 11.3% have macrosteosis and 8.3% have a sinusoidal hemorrhage.