Dietary supplementation of ß-1, 3-glucan improves the intestinal health of white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) by modulating intestinal microbiota and inhibiting inflammatory response.

The phenomenon of intestinal dysfunction is widely observed in white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) culture, and ß-1,3-glucan has been confirmed to be beneficial in intestinal health with a lack understanding of its underlying mechanism. Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria served as the predominant phyla inhabiting the intestine of white shrimp, whilst a significant variation in their proportion was recorded in shrimp fed with basal and ß-1,3-glucan supplementation diets in this study. Dietary supplementation of ß-1,3-glucan could dramatically increase the microbial diversity and affect microbial composition, concurrent with a notable reduction in the ratio of opportunistic pathogen Aeromonas, gram-negative microbes, from Gammaproteobacteria compared to the basal diet group. The benefits for microbial diversity and composition by ß-1,3-glucan improved the homeostasis of intestinal microbiota through the increase of specialists' number and inhibition of microbial competition caused by Aeromonas in ecological networks; afterward, the inhibition of Aeromonas by ß-1,3-glucan diet dramatically suppressed microbial metabolism related to lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis, followed by a conspicuous decrease in the intestinal inflammatory response. The improvement of intestinal health referred to the elevation in intestinal immune and antioxidant capacity, ultimately contributing to the growth of shrimp fed ß-1,3-glucan. These results suggested that ß-1,3-glucan supplementation improved the intestinal health of white shrimp through the modulation of intestinal microbiota homeostasis, the suppression of intestinal inflammatory response, and the elevation of immune and antioxidant capacity, and subsequently promoted the growth of white shrimp.

Response of Intestinal Microbiota to the Variation in Diets in Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella).

The intestinal microbiota is important for the nutrient metabolism of fish and is significantly influenced by the host's diet. The effect of ryegrass and commercial diets on the intestinal microbiota of grass carp was compared in this study. In comparison to ryegrass, artificial feed significantly reduced the microbial diversity in the intestine, which was measured by a decrease in the observed OTUs, ACE, Shannon, and the InvSimpson index. Although grass carp fed with ryegrass and artificial feed shared a dominant phyla Firmicutes and Proteobacteria, the microbial composition was clearly distinguishable between the two groups. In grass carp fed with ryegrass, Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, and Actinobacteria predominated, whereas Bacilli was significantly higher in the artificial feed group due to an increase in Weissella and an unassigned Bacillales bacteria, as well as a significant increase in a potential pathogen: Aeromonas australiensis. Grass carp fed with ryegrass exhibited a more complex ecological network performed by the intestinal bacterial community, which was dominated by cooperative interactions; this was also observed in grass carp fed with artificial feed. Despite this, the increase in A. australiensis increased the competitive interaction within this ecological network, which contributed to the vulnerable perturbation of the intestinal microbiota. The alteration of the microbial composition through diet can further affect microbial function. The intestinal microbial function in grass carp fed with ryegrass was rich in amino acids and exhibited an increased energy metabolism in order to compensate for a low-nutrient diet intake, while the artificial feed elevated the microbial lipid metabolism through the promotion of its synthesis in the primary and secondary bile acids, together with a notable enhancement of fatty acid biosynthesis. These results indicated that diet can affect the homeostasis of the intestinal microbiota by altering the microbial composition and the interspecific interactions, whilst microbial function can respond to a variation in diet.

[Capability and bacteria community analysis of an anaerobic baffled reactor treating soybean wastewater].

Capability and process characteristic of anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) treating soybean wastewater were investigated in a 4-compartment ABR with an effective volume of 28 L. During an operation period of 100 days, the organic loading rate (OLR) increased by stages and its influence on the chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency was researched. The bacteria community structures in anaerobic activated sludge from different stages were also investigated by single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) with the eubacterium universal primers SRV3-2P and BSF8/20, while the microbial genetic distance being analyzed by UPGMA communities clustering method. With an inoculated aerobic activated sludge of 18.0 g x L(-1) in terms of mixed liquor volatile suspend solid (MLVSS), the reactor started up at COD concentration of 2000 mg/L, hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 39.5 h and temperature of (35 +/- 1) degrees C for 31 d, the ABR achieved a stable state that resulted in 96% COD removal. When OLR increased stage by stage from 1.2 kg x (m3 x d)(-1) to 6.0 kg x (m3 x d)(-1), the reactor could performed steadily with a COD removal efficiency as high as 98%, and this indicated that compartmentalized ABR held a good performance during shock loadings. It was found that a step change in OLR had a remarkably effect on the structure and distribution of microbial communities in each compartment. With the organic loading rate increase, the genetic distances among the microbial communities in the compartments extended gradually, indicating that the specificity of microbial communities in each compartment was enhanced.