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¹ Department of Biological Basis of Animal Production, Faculty of Biology and Animal Breeding University of Life Sciences, Akademicka 13, Str, 20-950 Lublin, Poland DOI : 10.4194/1303-2712-v16_3_23 Viewed : 4121 - Downloaded : 3689 Clove oil (CO) used as an anaesthetic in aquaculture causes toxic effects in fish and invertebrates since it has a narrow margin between effective and lethal concentrations. Ectoine (ECT) is an osmoprotectant produced by halophilic bacteria in response to stressful factors. It was hypothesized that ECT may attenuate physiological alterations induced by CO in aquatic animals. The aim of the present study was to determine if ECT induces protective effects in Daphnia magna subjected to COinduced anaesthesia. Daphnids were treated with 50 or 150 µL/L CO alone or in the combination with 10, 25 or 50 mg/L ECT. The results showed that both concentrations of CO alone induced anaesthesia, heart arrhythmia, decreased heart rate, increased diastole/systole ratio and duration of diastole. On the other hand, ECT attenuated alterations evoked by CO with the most significant effects in the combination of 50 µL/L CO+25 mg/L ECT. The animals showed a prolonged TtA and attenuated depression of thoracic limb activity, heart rate, arrhythmia, decreased diastole/systole ratio and duration of diastole. The results indicate that ECT may be a cardioprotective agent in anaesthesized crustaceans. Keywords : Ectoine, clove oil, Daphnia magna, anaesthesia, heart activity