Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut health

The present study evaluated the effects of exogenous protease supplementation in low- and high-fishmeal (FM) diets on growth performance, feed utilization, innate immunity, digestive enzyme activity, nutrient digestibility, gut microbiota and intestinal morphology of Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus va...

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Main Authors: Mirasha Hasanthi, Rutchanee Chotikachinda, Nalin Medagoda, Kyeong-Jun Lee
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. 2025-09-01
Series:Animal Nutrition
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405654525000551
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author Mirasha Hasanthi
Rutchanee Chotikachinda
Nalin Medagoda
Kyeong-Jun Lee
author_facet Mirasha Hasanthi
Rutchanee Chotikachinda
Nalin Medagoda
Kyeong-Jun Lee
author_sort Mirasha Hasanthi
collection DOAJ
description The present study evaluated the effects of exogenous protease supplementation in low- and high-fishmeal (FM) diets on growth performance, feed utilization, innate immunity, digestive enzyme activity, nutrient digestibility, gut microbiota and intestinal morphology of Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei). A 2 × 3 factorial experiment was designed with two dietary FM levels (200 g/kg, positive control [PC]; and 100 g/kg, negative control [NC]) and three protease levels (0, 400 and 800 mg/kg) to obtain six experimental diets designated as PC, PC400, PC800, NC, NC400, and NC800. Six replicate groups of 30 shrimp (initial weight 0.30 ± 0.01 g) were fed the diets for 8 wk. Protease supplementation significantly improved (P < 0.001) growth performance and feed utilization efficiency in both high- and low-FM diets. Innate immunity and antioxidant enzyme activities were significantly enhanced (P < 0.001) with increasing FM and protease levels. Furthermore, the inclusion of protease in low-FM diets significantly increased (P < 0.001) total hemocyte count and phagocytic, phenoloxidase, lysozyme and superoxide dismutase activities, reaching levels comparable to the PC group. Increasing FM and protease levels significantly upregulated (P < 0.001) the expression of proPO, crustin, TGF-β, LvIKK-β and TLR3 genes, while downregulating TNF-α. The inclusion of protease in the low FM diet significantly increased (P < 0.05) digestive enzyme activities, intestinal villi length, whole-body amino acid composition and nutrient digestibility to the levels comparable to the PC group. The relative abundance of heterotrophic marine bacteria (P < 0.001), Gram-positive bacteria (P = 0.034) and Lactobacilli spp. (P < 0.001) in the gut significantly increased (P < 0.05) with increasing protease levels, while an inverse relationship was observed for Vibrio spp. (P < 0.001). These results demonstrated that protease supplementation in either the high- or low-FM diets could improve shrimp growth, feed utilization efficiency, immunity, nutrient digestibility, intestinal morphology and gut microbiome. Notably, supplementing the low-FM diet with 800 mg/kg protease improved shrimp performance, reaching levels comparable to those obtained with the PC diet.
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series Animal Nutrition
spelling doaj-art-1a5953a5931841eda3062e18c7a34c9e2025-08-20T03:59:40ZengKeAi Communications Co., Ltd.Animal Nutrition2405-65452025-09-0122364910.1016/j.aninu.2025.04.002Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut healthMirasha Hasanthi0Rutchanee Chotikachinda1Nalin Medagoda2Kyeong-Jun Lee3Department of Marine Life Science, Jeju National University, Jeju 63243, South KoreaDSM Nutritional Products Ltd., Bangkok 10310, ThailandDepartment of Marine Life Science, Jeju National University, Jeju 63243, South KoreaDepartment of Marine Life Science, Jeju National University, Jeju 63243, South Korea; Marine Life Research Institute, Jeju National University, Jeju 63333, South Korea; Corresponding author.The present study evaluated the effects of exogenous protease supplementation in low- and high-fishmeal (FM) diets on growth performance, feed utilization, innate immunity, digestive enzyme activity, nutrient digestibility, gut microbiota and intestinal morphology of Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei). A 2 × 3 factorial experiment was designed with two dietary FM levels (200 g/kg, positive control [PC]; and 100 g/kg, negative control [NC]) and three protease levels (0, 400 and 800 mg/kg) to obtain six experimental diets designated as PC, PC400, PC800, NC, NC400, and NC800. Six replicate groups of 30 shrimp (initial weight 0.30 ± 0.01 g) were fed the diets for 8 wk. Protease supplementation significantly improved (P < 0.001) growth performance and feed utilization efficiency in both high- and low-FM diets. Innate immunity and antioxidant enzyme activities were significantly enhanced (P < 0.001) with increasing FM and protease levels. Furthermore, the inclusion of protease in low-FM diets significantly increased (P < 0.001) total hemocyte count and phagocytic, phenoloxidase, lysozyme and superoxide dismutase activities, reaching levels comparable to the PC group. Increasing FM and protease levels significantly upregulated (P < 0.001) the expression of proPO, crustin, TGF-β, LvIKK-β and TLR3 genes, while downregulating TNF-α. The inclusion of protease in the low FM diet significantly increased (P < 0.05) digestive enzyme activities, intestinal villi length, whole-body amino acid composition and nutrient digestibility to the levels comparable to the PC group. The relative abundance of heterotrophic marine bacteria (P < 0.001), Gram-positive bacteria (P = 0.034) and Lactobacilli spp. (P < 0.001) in the gut significantly increased (P < 0.05) with increasing protease levels, while an inverse relationship was observed for Vibrio spp. (P < 0.001). These results demonstrated that protease supplementation in either the high- or low-FM diets could improve shrimp growth, feed utilization efficiency, immunity, nutrient digestibility, intestinal morphology and gut microbiome. Notably, supplementing the low-FM diet with 800 mg/kg protease improved shrimp performance, reaching levels comparable to those obtained with the PC diet.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405654525000551ProteaseEnzymePacific white shrimpAquafeedProteinDigestibility
spellingShingle Mirasha Hasanthi
Rutchanee Chotikachinda
Nalin Medagoda
Kyeong-Jun Lee
Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut health
Animal Nutrition
Protease
Enzyme
Pacific white shrimp
Aquafeed
Protein
Digestibility
title Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut health
title_full Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut health
title_fullStr Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut health
title_full_unstemmed Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut health
title_short Exogenous protease supplementation in high- and low-fishmeal diets for Pacific white shrimp (Penaeus vannamei): Comparative effect on growth, immunity, nutrient digestibility and gut health
title_sort exogenous protease supplementation in high and low fishmeal diets for pacific white shrimp penaeus vannamei comparative effect on growth immunity nutrient digestibility and gut health
topic Protease
Enzyme
Pacific white shrimp
Aquafeed
Protein
Digestibility
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405654525000551
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