Optimum dietary protein-to-energy ratio for juvenile whiteleg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei , reared in a biofloc system

Abstract

An 8‐week feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the optimum dietary protein‐to‐energy (P/E) ratio in juvenile whiteleg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. Six diets were formulated with two protein levels (30% and 35%) and three digestible energy levels (16, 17.5 and 19 kJ/g diet) at each protein level (30P16, 30P17.5, 30P19, 35P16, 35P17.5 and 35P19). Fifty shrimp averaging 0.97 ± 0.03g (Mean ± SD) were randomly distributed in biofloc tanks and fed one of the experimental diets. Weight gain (WG), specific growth rate (SGR) and feed efficiency (FE) of shrimp fed the 35P17.5 diet were significantly higher than those of shrimp fed 30P16, 30P17.5 and 30P19 diets (p < .05). Results for non‐specific immune responses showed that diet 35P17.5 caused higher lysozyme activity in shrimp comparing to lower protein diets. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) of plasma were lower for shrimp fed on diets consisting of higher protein and energy levels than shrimp fed on the 30P19 diet. Analyses of digestive enzyme activities showed higher trypsin activities for shrimp fed on 35P17.5 and 35P19 diets comparing to 30P16 and 30P17.5 diets. Also, hepatopancreatic lipase activity of shrimp fed 35P16, 35P17.5 and 35P19 diets were significantly higher than those of shrimp fed the other diets. In conclusion, based on the results for growth performance, biochemical parameters, immune responses, oxidative stress and enzyme activities, 35% protein and 17.5 kJ/g digestible energy (35P17.5) could be considered as the optimum protein‐to‐energy ratio in the diet of juvenile whiteleg shrimp reared in a biofloc system.

Use of biofloc technology in shrimp aquaculture: a comprehensive review, with emphasis on the last decade

“…At appropriate protein: energy (P: E) ratios, dietary protein can be spared for growth at the expense of dietary energy (El-Sayed & Teshima 1992;El-Sayed & Kawanna 2008). This assumption was tested in juvenile whiteleg shrimp (0.97 g) reared in a heterotrophic biofloc system and fed test diets containing two protein (30 and 35%) and three digestible energy (DE) (16, 17.5 and 19 kJ DE g À1 ) levels (Hamidoghli et al 2018). A diet containing 35% cp and 17.5 kJ g À1 energy (DE) was suggested for optimum performance.…”

“…This assumption was tested in juvenile whiteleg shrimp (0.97 g) reared in a heterotrophic biofloc system and fed test diets containing two protein (30 and 35%) and three digestible energy (DE) (16, 17.5 and 19 kJ DE g −1 ) levels (Hamidoghli et al . 2018). A diet containing 35% cp and 17.5 kJ g −1 energy (DE) was suggested for optimum performance.…”

Effects of three different dietary plant protein sources as fishmeal replacers in juvenile whiteleg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei

“…This is in large part due to its rapid growth, disease tolerance, high stocking density tolerance, relatively low dietary protein requirement (30%), and broadness of supporting research (NRC 2011). However, as the body of knowledge about the dietary requirements of whiteleg shrimp grows and the cost of fishmeal continues to rise, there will be a need to optimize the diet by minimizing dietary fishmeal (FM) inclusion (Hamidoghli et al 2018).…”

The nitrification process for nitrogen removal in biofloc system aquaculture

“…As mentioned earlier, biofloc is a high‐quality food source that can be consumed by shrimp and fish. Considering that during aquaculture of any species, food means between 40 and 60% of the operative production costs (Khatoon et al 2016), a substantial reduction in operating expenses using BFT is attractive (Crab et al 2012; Shao et al 2017; Hamidoghli et al 2018).…”