Effects of single or conjoint administration of lactic acid bacteria as potential probiotics on growth, immune response and disease resistance of snakehead fish (Channa argus).

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) has been documented to promoting growth, enhancing immunity and disease resistance. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the single or conjoint effects of Lactococcus lactis L19 (Genbank: MT102745.1) and Enterococcus faecalis W24 (Genbank: MT102746.1) isolated from the intestine of Channa argus (C. argus) on growth performance, immune response and disease resistance of C. argus. A total of 720 apparently healthy C. argus (9.50 ± 0.03 g) were randomly divided into four equal groups. Fish were fed with a basal diet (CK) supplemented with L. lactis (L19), E. faecalis (W24), and L. lactis L19 + E. faecalis W24 (L + W) at 1.0 × 108 cfu/g basal diet for 56 days. After feeding, the final body weight (FBW), weight gain (WG), feed efficiency ratio (FER), specific growth rate (SGR) and protein efficiency ratio (PER) had significantly increased (p < 0.05), especially with L19. The results indicated that single or conjoint administration of LAB as potential probiotics can induce high levels of IgM, ACP, AKP, LZM, C3 and C4 activity in serum, which may effectively induce humoral immunity, and L19 induce even higher levels. Meanwhile, when compared to CK group, the results of qPCR showed that LAB administration significantly up-regulated (p < 0.05) the expression of IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, IFN-γ, HSP70, HSP90, TGF-ß in the spleen, head kidney, gill, liver and intestine of C. argus. After challenge with Aeromonas veronii, the survival rates in all LAB-fed groups were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than that of the CK group, and the L19 group showed the highest (63.3%) disease resistance. Our data indicated that L. lactis L19 and E. faecalis W24, as a feed additive at 1.0 × 108 cfu/g feed, could promote growth performance, enhance immune response and disease resistance of C. argus, with greatest effects in fish fed L. lactis L19 for 56 days. Hence, these LAB additives could be used as promising probiotics for C. argus. L19 was more effective than W24 or the mixture of the two for promoting growth performance, enhancing immune response and disease resistance of C. argus.

Effect of sub-chronic exposure to selenium and astaxanthin on Channa argus: Bioaccumulation, oxidative stress and inflammatory response.

Selenium (Se) is the most common micronutrient and that becomes toxic when present at higher concentrations in aquatic environments. Astaxanthin (AST) has been documented to possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The aim of this study was to explore the potential of dietary AST and Se exposure on oxidative stress, and inflammatory response in Channa argus. After acclimation, 540 fish were randomly distributed into nine groups housed in twenty-seven glass tanks. The fish were exposed for 8 weeks to waterborne Se at 0, 100 and 200 µg L-1 or dietary AST at 0, 50 and 100 mg kg-1. The results shown that Se accumulation in the kidney, liver, spleen, intestine and gill were significantly increased following Se exposure, dietary 50 and 100 mg kg-1 AST supplementation decreased the accumulation of Se in the kidney, liver, spleen, and intestine. In addition, AST supplementation can decrease oxidative stress and inflammatory response in the liver and spleen following exposure to waterborne Se. These results indicate that AST has the potential to alleviate the effects of Se toxicity in C. argus.

Effect of Bacillus cereus against cadmium induced hematological disturbances and immunosuppression in Carassius auratus gibelio.

Cadmium (Cd) is the most common heavy metal and is easily detected in aquatic environments worldwide. The genus Bacillus was one of dominant probiotics, which was commonly used in aquaculture. The present study was undertaken to explore the effects of Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) supplementation on hematological parameters and the immune response of Carassius auratus gibelio (C. gibelio) following Cd exposure. Fish were exposed to waterborne Cd (0, 1 and 2 mg/L) and/or treated with dietary B. cereus at 108 cfu/g for four weeks. The hematological disturbances observed after exposure of waterborne Cd included significant decreases in red blood cell (RBC) count, hemoglobin (Hb) concentration and hematocrit (HCT). While significant elevation (P < 0.05) of RBC count, HCT and Hb levels in the 1 and 2 mg/L Cd-B. cereus administration group at 4 weeks, compared with the Cd-only group. Among serum enzymatic activities, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT) activities by Cd exposure were significantly higher than controls, but this increase was effectively inhibited in Cd-B. cereus administration groups. In the Cd-B. cereus administration group, significant down-regulation of Hsp70, Hsp90, IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-α in conjunction with the up-regulation of IgM and LZM in the spleen indicated that B. cereus alleviated the Cd-induced damage to the immune system to some degree. The results of this study suggested that B. cereus has the potential to countermeasure Cd-induced hematological disturbances and immunosuppression in C. gibelio.