Dietary Pediococcus acidilactici improved the growth performance, feed utilization, gut microbiota, and disease resistance against Fusarium solani in Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei

Shrimp aquaculture is one of the fastest-growing food production sectors in the world, due to its economic importance and ability to meet the protein needs of a growing population. However, bacterial and fungal infection has caused significant problems in the shrimp sector which instigated enormous economic loss for the main producer countries. Probiotic feed additives can enhance the gut health benefits and immune status of shrimp, thus boosting the growth, production efficacy, and disease resistance. Thereafter, the effects of different levels of dietary probiotic, Pediococcus acidilactici (PA), on growth performance, feed consumption, immunological response, antioxidant activities, and disease resistance in Litopenaeus vannamei juveniles against the pathogen, Fusarium solani, were investigated in this study. In 12 hapas (4 treatments x 3 replicates), 240 L. vannamei juveniles (4.0 +/- 0.03 g) were randomly allocated into four treatments (T0 = 0 g PA/kg as control, T1 = 2.0 g PA/kg, T2 = 2.5 g PA/kg, and T3 = 3.0 g PA/kg of diet). The results provided that all PA-supplemented groups had considerably higher growth performance (final body weight, weight gains, and percentages), the final number, shrimp biomass (m(3)), survival rate, and feed intake (p < 0.05) than the control, with T3 being much higher. Regarding the body chemical composition, protein percentage was increased significantly in T3, while lipid was decreased significantly by dietary PA inclusion (p < 0.05). Feed conversion ratio (FCR, down arrow) and nonspecific immune responses (up arrow), beneficial bacteria were improved significantly by dietary PA supplementation (p < 0.05). When challenged with the fungus F. solani, shrimp treated with dietary PA had significantly (p < 0.05) decreased fatality rates. Overall, the current investigation discovered that high doses of dietary PA increased growth status, feed utilization, gut microbiota, and health status of L. vannamei and disease resistance against F. solani.