Evaluation of the impact of probiotics usage in aquaculture: A systematic review

Abstract

In aquaculture, probiotics are widely used for preventing the diseases. Probiotics are live beneficial bacteria that are ingested into the gastrointestinal tract through food or water or any dietary supplement to boost immunity and internal microbial resistance. Several experimental studies have been undertaken on the effect of probiotics on the immune system of diverse aquatic animals, as well as the mechanism involved to control the harmful pathogens. As a result, the current study aims to conduct a systematic review to update the findings related to specific immunological markers. Relevant studies from PubMed, EMBASE, and Google Scholar were systematically searched until the latest issue. Experimental studies written in the English language were included in the review. The main outcome was to identify the insightful outcome about the impact of probiotics. Systemic review was performed for 12 studies. The SYRCL’S risk of bias tool for the animal study was also used to evaluate the quality of the included studies. In conclusion, the results of the current review study summarize that probiotic could boost the immune system of aquatic animals by increasing plasma immunoglobulin, cytokines, plasma lysozyme, respiratory burst, peroxidase, phagocytosis, and alternative complement activities.