title: Poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) increases growth performance and intestinal bacterial range-weighted richness in juvenile European sea bass, Dicentrarchus labrax.
abstract: The bacterial storage polymer poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) has the potential to be used as an alternative anti-infective strategy for aquaculture rearing. In this research, the effects of (partially) replacing the feed of European sea bass juveniles with PHB were investigated. During a 6-week trial period, the PHB showed the ability to act as an energy source for the fish. This indicated that PHB was degraded and used during gastrointestinal passage. The gut pH decreased from 7.7 to 7.2 suggesting that the presence of PHB in the gut led to the increased production of (short-chain fatty) acids. The diets supplemented with 2% and 5% PHB (w/w) induced a gain of the initial fish weight with a factor 2.4 and 2.7, respectively, relative to a factor 2.2 in the normal feed treatment. Simultaneously, these treatments showed the highest bacterial range-weighted richness in the fish intestine. Based on molecular analysis, higher dietary PHB levels induced larger changes in the bacterial community composition. From our results, it seems that PHB can have a beneficial effect on fish growth performance and that the intestinal bacterial community structure may be closely related to this phenomenon.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Microbial Ecology and Technology (LabMET), Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: De Schryver
authors.forename: Amit Kumar
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Sinha
authors.forename: Prabesh Singh
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Kunwar
authors.forename: Kartik
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Baruah
authors.forename: Willy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Verstraete
authors.forename: Nico
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Boon
authors.forename: Gudrun
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: De Boeck
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bossier
mesh_terms: D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D000821:Animal Feed; D000818:Animals; D017756:Aquaculture / Q000379:methods*; D001492:Bass / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000382:microbiology; D001835:Body Weight; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D006885:Hydroxybutyrates / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007422:Intestines / Q000382:microbiology; D011091:Polyesters / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016019:Survival Analysis; D000094122:Polyhydroxybutyrates
chemical_list: D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid; D006885:Hydroxybutyrates; D011091:Polyesters; C003182:poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate; D000094122:Polyhydroxybutyrates