The effects of dietary β-1,3/1,6-linked glucan administration on nonspecific immune responses, hematology and disease resistance against Edwardsiella tarda in olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus were evaluated. Fish were fed the experimental diets...
The effects of dietary β-1,3/1,6-linked glucan administration on nonspecific immune responses, hematology and disease resistance against Edwardsiella tarda in olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus were evaluated. Fish were fed the experimental diets supplemented with 0 %, 0.01 %, 0.05 %, 0.1 %, and 0.5 % of β-glucan to a commercial diet for 7 weeks. The test was performed in two ways such as fed on each β-glucan concentrations daily and every other week alternately. The body weight gain from the fish fed on daily the 0.05 % supplemented diet and fed on alternately the 0.1 % supplemented diet of β-glucan were significantly higher than the control. Both lysozyme activity and intracellular superoxide anion production of kidney phagocytes were higher in the all experimental groups than in the control. But there was no large difference in hematology among each group. The relative percent survival rate (RPS) after an artificial challenge with 4×10^(6) cells of E. tarda per fish was higher than the control, except for that fed on daily the 0.01 % supplemented diet.