The experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different algae in diet on growth, survival, and interleukin-10 productions of sea cucumber. At first, a 9-week feeding trail was conducted to evaluate the growth performance and survival of the sea cucumber fed one of the six experimental diets containing ST (Sargassum thunbergii), UL (Ulva lactuca), UP (Undaria pinnatifida), LJ (Laminaria japonica), SS (Schizochytrium sp.), and NO (Nannochloropsis oculata) in a recirculating aquaculture system. The result showed that survival was not significantly different among the dietary treatments, and the specific growth rate (SGR) of sea cucumber fed the UL diet (1.58% d ) was significantly higher than that of sea cucumber fed the other diets (P < 0.05), except for the LJ and NO diets. Secondly, interleukin (IL)-10 gene expression was determined where mice splenocytes were stimulated with 10 μg ml −1 of sea cucumber extracts for 2 h. The result showed that IL-10 gene expression levels were significantly increased in UL, LJ, and NO diets fed sea cucumber extracts compared to other experimental diets. The results suggest that dietary inclusion with Ulva lactuca, Laminaria japonica, and Nannochloropsis oculata algae may improve the growth of juvenile sea cucumber and could upregulate IL-10 gene expression in mice splenocytes. Such detailed information could be helpful in further development of more appropriate diets for sea cucumber culture.
The sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus is a commercially valuable aquaculture species in Korea. Aquaculture species require specific nursery culture conditions to increase survival and growth rates. Sea cucumbers hibernate during the high temperatures of summer and during the low temperatures of winter, and suboptimal temperature conditions decrease sea cucumber growth and survival rates. The natural South Korean environment is very unfavorable for culturing sea cucumber; therefore, developing a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) capable of breeding and growing sea cucumber year-round is necessary. The aim of this study was to investigate growth performance of juvenile sea cucumber in a RAS. Growth and survival rates of juvenile sea cucumber were high during our 24-week experiment. Sea cucumber survival rates were 87.8-93.3%, and specific growth rates were 0.4689-0.7846.
Pollution caused by fecal solids released from recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) is a growing global concern requiring immediate attention. Thus, this study investigated the physicochemical characteristics of fecal solid feed from RASs used for eel and rainbow trout farming. The concentrations of proteins, lipids, crude ash, and moisture in eel fecal solids were 10.9%, 1.2%, 85.8%, and 72.2%, respectively, while those in rainbow trout fecal solid feed were 20.5%, 3.2%, 70.9%, and 87.0%, respectively. The control group was fed a mixture of sea cucumber and dried sea mud. The protein digestibilities of eel and rainbow trout fecal solids were 25.43% and 23.96%, respectively, while the respective lipid digestibilities were 35.62% and 36.80%, respectively.
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