Taurine enhances antioxidant enzyme activity and immune response in Seriola rivoliana juveniles after lipopolysaccharide injection

Abstract

The use of additives in fish feeds is a practice used worldwide to provide better productive results and improve the fish's health and immune capacity to face disease outbreaks. This study aimed to analyze the effects of the different doses of taurine in fish feed and its impact on the immune-related parameters and antioxidant enzyme activity after LPS (lipopolysaccharide) injection. For this, immune-related gene expression was evaluated as well as lysozyme activity and antioxidant enzyme activity. The results showed that using taurine at 2% (TAU 2%) improved the expression of il1-β, tnf-α, and tlr-3 compared to the other treatments at 24 hours post LPS injection. Lysozyme activity and antioxidant activity such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase were higher in the treatment with both taurine 1% (TAU 1%) and TAU 2% when compared with the negative control (C-) and the positive control (C+) treatments after 72 hours post LPS injection. These results suggest that using 2% of exogenous taurine added to a commercial fish feed for juveniles of Seriola rivoliana can improve their immunocompetency and counteract the oxidative stress caused by exposure to LPS.