Abstract
Whether through direct supplementation of bacteria or by prebiotic supplementation thought to favour subsets of bacteria, modulation of gut microbiota constitutes an important and promising alternative to the use of prophylactic and growth promoting antibiotics in worldwide aquaculture. We fed a commercial base feed, alone or supplemented with either proprietary β-glucan, β-glucan and organic acids, citrus flavonoid or yeast cell wall supplements, to rainbow trout over a period of four weeks. Fish from each feed group were then subjected to experimental, waterborne infection with Yersinia ruckeri O1 biotype 2. Following experimental feeding, the β-glucan and organic acids supplemented group showed significantly improved feed conversion and lipid efficiency ratios. Furthermore, the β-glucan, β-glucan and organic acids and citrus flavonoid supplements proved to significantly reduce the risk of mortality in rainbow trout during experimental infection as shown by hazard ratio analysis. Resulting in 33.2%, 30.6% and 30.5% reduction in risk relative to the non-supplemented base feed, respectively, these three supplements show a promising potential either as stand-alone feed supplements, or as components in complex feed formulations.