Genetic assessment of residual feed intake as a feed efficiency trait in the Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei

Abstract

BackgroundResidual feed intake (RFI) was investigated as a measure of feed efficiency in a breeding population of Litopenaeus vannamei. Shrimp from 34 families were housed individually and feed efficiency and growth traits were recorded during two successive growth periods. The objectives of this study were (1) to estimate the heritability of RFI and related traits, including feed efficiency ratio (FER), average daily gain (ADG) and daily feed intake (DFI), (2) to determine the relationships between RFI and other traits, and (3) to evaluate the variation of these traits across two growth periods. ResultsShrimp displayed large inter-individual variation in RFI, FER, ADG and DFI during each growth period. Heritability estimates of all these traits during both periods reached high values (0.577 ± 0.232 to 0.707 ± 0.252). RFI showed weak and no genetic correlations with ADG during the two growth periods between days 1 to 21 (0.135 ± 0.204) and 22 to 42 (–0.018 ± 0.128), respectively, but high positive genetic correlations with DFI (>0.8). Weak and moderate negative genetic correlations were observed between RFI and FER during the two periods (–0.126 ± 0.208 and –0.387 ± 0.183). As evidenced by the high genetic correlations between the two periods for each trait (>0.6), trait performance of the shrimp tended to be consistent across periods.ConclusionsFor the first time, accurate measurement of individual feed efficiency on a large scale was achieved in shrimp. Although the estimated heritability reported here for RFI may be overestimated, it is a heritable trait in L. vannamei that can be improved by genetic improvement. For L. vannamei, the biggest potential advantage in using RFI as a measure of feed efficiency is that it is independent of growth rate, and thus genetic selection on RFI has the potential to improve feed efficiency and reduce feed intake, without compromising growth performance.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12711-017-0334-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Meta‐analysis of genetic parameters of production traits in cultured shrimp species

“…Daily feed intake (DFI) and feed efficiency ratio (FER) were estimated as the measures of feed efficiency. The mean unweighted FER was higher (0.66) in Pacific white shrimp compared with Chinese white shrimp (0.24) in the pre‐harvest stage (Dai, Luan, Lu, Luo, Meng, et al, 2017). A wide range of reproductive traits were recorded across studies at the mature stage.…”

A Random Regression Model Based on a Single-Step Method for Improving the Genomic Prediction Accuracy of Residual Feed Intake in Pigs

“…RFI is defined as the difference between the observed feed intake and the expected feed intake for maintenance and growth of an individual (Koch et al, 1963). Research has shown that genetic selection for RFI could improve feed efficiency and reduce feed intake without affecting growth performance (Dai et al, 2017).…”

Genomic Selection and Genome-wide Association Study for Feed-Efficiency Traits in a Farmed Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) Population

“…Genetic parameters estimates for FE traits are relatively rare in aquaculture species, but have been extensively assessed in livestock species with significant heritabilites detected, ranging from 0.13 up to 0.84 ( de Verdal et al, 2011 ; Case et al, 2012 ; Freetly et al, 2020 ; Tortereau et al, 2020 ; Marchesi et al, 2021 ). The studies on aquaculture species have also detected moderate to high heritabilities (0.57–0.71) for average daily gain (ADG), daily feed intake (DFI), feed efficiency ratio (FER) and RFI in a breeding Pacific white shrimp ( Litopenaeus vannamei ) population ( Dai et al, 2017 ). Furthermore, Kause et al (2006) found significant heritabilities for growth in rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ), but not for FI, whereas Dvergedal et al (2019) found significant heritabilities ranging from 0.18 to 0.45 for several feed efficiency traits in Atlantic salmon, such as weight gain, residual weight gain, and stable isotope profile in food.…”

“…high heritabilities (0.57-0.71) for average daily gain (ADG), daily feed intake (DFI), feed efficiency ratio (FER) and RFI in a breeding Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) population (Dai et al, 2017). Furthermore, Kause et al (2006) found significant heritabilities for growth in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), but not for FI, whereas Dvergedal et al (2019) found significant heritabilities ranging from 0.18 to 0.45 for several feed efficiency traits in Atlantic salmon, such as weight gain, residual weight gain, and stable isotope profile in food.…”