Effects of mannan oligosaccharides and fructooligosaccharides on the growth and nonspecific immune responses of juvenile freshwater prawn Macrobrachium acanthurus

Abstract

The freshwater prawn Macrobrachium acanthurus represents a valuable resource for fishermen's communities in Mexico, although the information of its culture conditions and nutrition is still scarce. Prebiotics are defined as non-digestible components that are metabolized by specific health-promoting bacteria in the host's digestive system, improving the health status and growth performance of cultured aquatic organisms. Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) and mannan oligosaccharides (MOS) are among the most used prebiotics in aquaculture. The present work aimed to determine the effects of dietary FOS and MOS in the growth performance, immune responses, and sexual maturity of juvenile freshwater prawn Macrobrachium acanthurus. Juveniles (0.06 ± 0.001 g) were fed with diets supplemented with a 3 g kg-1 diet of commercial FOS and MOS for 80 days. At the end of the feeding trial, the following indices were calculated: weight gain, specific growth rate, and feed conversion efficiency, as well as superoxide dismutase and lysozyme activities in hepatopancreas tissue. The growth performance, survival, juveniles' protein contents did no show significant differences among the groups. No differences were detected in superoxide dismutase and lysozyme activities among experimental groups. Around day 60 of the feeding trial, the females fed with the prebiotics maturated, and by the end of the trial, several of them were carrying eggs. It seems that prebiotics might have a role in sexual maturation, but further research is necessary to establish if prebiotics influences the early maturation of M. acanthurus.

Growth performance and gene expression of FAS, CPT1, G6P, and HK in juveniles of the freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium acanthurus, fed diets with different levels of protein, lipids, and carbohydrates

“…Growth performance in terms of WG and SGR had the best results in prawns fed diets with 35% protein inclusion, a level that is close to that reported by Villafuerte et al (2016) who observed a requirement of 37.8% protein inclusion for juvenile M. acanthurus. The values obtained of WG and SGR were higher to those reported by Villafuerte et al (2016) but lower than those reported by Varela-Granados et al (2021) in juveniles. Despite the same stage of development and similar initial weights in those reports, the differences in growth performance observed with the present research seem to be related to the formulations of diets.…”

“…Five prawn larvae at 40 days posthatch (DPH), and an initial, individual weight of 60.9 ± 10.9 mg (mean ± SD) were randomly stocked in each tank. Each diet was randomly assigned and fed to triplicate groups at 7% of BW/day per tank (Varela‐Granados et al, 2021). The daily ration was divided into two equal feedings at 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Every 15 days, prawns were bulk weighed in each tank, and the ration size was modified accordingly.…”

Effects of Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) on the Immune Response of the Shrimp Penaeus vannamei and on the Reduction in Vibrio spp. and Pseudomonas spp. in Cultures of Post-Larvae

“…Lectins are proteins that play a role in the pattern recognition receptor (PRR) reaction in invertebrates and recognize all or parts of sugar molecules [53]. According to Song SK, Beck BR, Kim D, Park J, Kim J, Kim HD and Ringø E [54], prebiotics such as FOS, mannan oligosaccharides, inulin, and β-glucan are also classified as immunosaccharides, which could directly enhance non-specific immune responses through interactions with the pattern recognition receptors.…”