Ph.d.-candidate Shruti Gupta
"Feed components (probiotics/prebiotics/antimicrobials) alter the intestinal bacterial profile of Atlantic salmon"
Title of thesis:Feed additives elicit changes in the structure of the intestinal bacterial community of Atlantic salmon
Title of trial lecture:Current status of antimicrobial resistance in aquaculture and possible preventive strategies
Evaluation committee:- Assistant Professor Sylvia Brugmann, Wageningen University & Research, The Netherlands
- Professor Henning Sørum, NMBU
- Associate Professor Margarita Novoa-Garrido, FBA, Nord University
Supervisors:- Professor Kiron Viswanath, FBA, Nord University
- Professor Jorge Fernandes, FBA, Nord University
About the thesis:
Optimal health management through feeds is key to ensure sustainability of Atlantic salmon farming. Feeds that help the fish to maintain good health contain additives, for example, prebiotics and probiotics. These feed additives have the ability to change the intestinal microbiota, which plays a pivotal role in maintaining host health. Therefore, in my project I generated the knowledge about the influence of selected additives on intestinal microbiota of salmon, using the next-generation sequencing technology. Further, I examined the intestinal microbe-microbe associations under the influence of different the additives, employing in-silico analysis.
The molecular profiling revealed that the dietary components altered the diversity and composition of the intestinal bacterial communities in the fish. The lactic acid bacteria supplemented in the feed colonized the intestine of salmon, indicating the potential of the candidate probiotics. On the other hand, prebiotics was able to selectively influence certain bacterial phyla - Proteobacteria, Spirochaetes and Actinobacteria. Additionally, the application of commonly employed antibiotics indicated the differential manipulation of intestinal microbial communities of salmon. The results also suggested that feed additives can alter the microbe-microbe interactions.
Taken together, our findings provide the baseline information for future studies that explore the dietary manipulations of the intestinal microbiota of the fish and the microbial interactions between microbes and the host. This knowledge will eventually be useful in developing better fish health management practices.
The PhD trial lecture and defence are open to the public. The thesis is available on request. Please contact Kristine Vevik, email: kristine.vevik@nord.no
Link for live straming:
https://mediasite.nord.no/Mediasite/Catalog/Full/8d4c224e2a284d60a18742117d22cc2f21