Seyed Hossein Hoseinifar - Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Fisheries and Environmental Sciences, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran
Parviz Zare; Hamed Kolangi Miandare - Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Fisheries and Environmental Sciences, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran

The present study investigates the effects of different routes of inulin administration as prebiotic on gut microbiota and survival rate of Indian white shrimp post-larvae. Four hundred and fifty Indian white shrimp post-larvae (PL۱) were stocked in nine tanks. The tanks were assigned into three treatments: feeding with inulin-treated (۱۱۰ mg L-۱) Artemia nauplii (I-T), feeding with inulin-enriched (۱۱۰ mg L-۱) Artemia nauplii (I-E) and control which repeated triplicates. Feeding trial was performed until PL۱۱ stage and then gut microbiota was studied using culture based method. Also, survival rate was calculated at the end of feeding trial. Our results showed that feeding on inulin enriched or treated Artemia nauplii had no significant effect on total viable culturable autochthonous bacteria and Vibrio spp. levels of the gut microbiota (p > ۰.۰۵). However, a remarkable increase of lactic acid bacteria levels (LAB) was observed in I-E treatment (p < ۰.۰۵). Administration of inulin enriched Artemia nauplii significantly elevated survival rates of Indian white shrimp post-larvae (p < ۰.۰۵). These results encourage administration of prebiotic-enriched Artemia nauplii in post larval stage of Indian white shrimp but determination the mode of action of prebiotic on various aspects of shrimp larviculture merit further research.

Artemia, Fenneropenaeus indicus, Intestinal microbiota, Prebiotic, Survival