Changes in digestive enzyme activities during larval development of leopard grouper (Mycteroperca rosacea) R. Martı ´nez-Lagos • D. Tovar-Ramı ´rez • V. Gracia-Lo ´pez • J. P. Lazo Received: 9 April 2013 / Accepted: 25 October 2013 Ó Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013 Abstract The leopard grouper is an endemic species of the Mexican Pacific with an important commercial fishery and good aquaculture potential. In order to assess the digestive capacity of this species during the larval period and aid in the formulation of adequate weaning diets, this study aimed to characterize the ontogeny of digestive enzymes during development of the digestive system. Digestive enzymes trypsin, chymotrypsin, acid protease, leucine–alanine pepti- dase, alkaline phosphatase, aminopeptidase N, lipase, amylase and maltase were quantified in larvae fed live prey and weaned onto a formulated microdiet at 31 days after hatching (DAH) and compared with fasting larvae. Enzyme activity for trypsin, lipase and amylase were detected before the opening of the mouth and the onset of exogenous feeding, indicating a precocious development of the digestive system that has been described in many fish species. The intracel- lular enzyme activity of leucine–alanine peptidase was high during the first days of development, with a tendency to decrease as larvae developed, reaching undetectable levels at the end of the experimental period. In contrast, activities of enzymes located in the intestinal brush border (i.e., aminopeptidase and alkaline phosphatase) were low at the start of exog- enous feeding but progressively increased with larval development, indicating the gradual maturation of the digestive system. Based on our results, we conclude that leopard grouper larvae possess a functional digestive system at hatching and before the onset of exogenous feeding. The significant increase in the activity of trypsin, lipase, amylase and acid protease between 30 and 40 DAH suggests that larvae of this species can be successfully weaned onto microdiets during this period. Keywords Mycteroperca rosacea Á Digestive capacity Á Larval development Á Ontogeny Introduction Optimization of the culture techniques for rearing marine fish larvae requires a thorough knowledge of the biology and physiology of the species of interest in order to adapt best aquaculture practices to increase R. Martı ´nez-Lagos Centro Universitario Regional del Centro (CURC), Universidad Nacional Auto ´noma de Honduras, Km. 1.5 carretera a Tegucigalpa, aldea de Tenguaje, Comayagua, Honduras D. Tovar-Ramı ´rez (&) Á V. Gracia-Lo ´pez Instituto Polite ´cnico Nacional 195, Centro de Investigaciones Biolo ´gicas del Noroeste (CIBNOR), Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita Sur, 23096 La Paz, BCS, Mexico e-mail: dtovar04@cibnor.mx J. P. Lazo Centro de Investigacio ´n Cientı ´fica y de Educacio ´n Superior de Ensenada Baja California, Km. 107 Carretera Tijuana, 22860 Ensenada, BC, Mexico 123 Fish Physiol Biochem DOI 10.1007/s10695-013-9884-5