Dietary chromium promotes growth performance, immunity response, antioxidant capacity, insulin signaling pathways, and glucolipid metabolism in juvenile oriental river prawn (Macrobrachium nipponense)

Abstract

The present study investigated the effects of dietary Cr on growth performance, antioxidant capacity, immunity response, insulin signaling pathway, and glucose-lipid metabolism in juvenile oriental river prawns (Macrobrachium nipponense). Moreover, the study also evaluated the optimal dietary Cr required for supplementation in juvenile oriental river prawns. Five semi-purified experimental diets were prepared by adding 0, 0.3, 0.6, 1.2 and 2.4 mg Cr kg−1 diet to a basal diet resulting into 0.74, 1.07, 1.35, 1.87 and 2.51 mg Cr kg−1 diets, respectively. The results showed that the prawns fed on 1.35 mg Cr kg−1 had significantly higher growth performance and triglyceride content, acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, and antioxidant capacity activities (P < 0.05). Moreover, feeding the prawns on 1.35 mg Cr kg−1 lowered significantly pyruvic acid content and aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase activities (P < 0.05). Accordingly, the prawns fed on 1.35 mg Cr kg−1 had significantly higher survival after Aeromonas hydrophila infection (P < 0.05). The prawns fed on dietary 1.87 mg Cr kg−1 increased significantly the mRNA expression of insulin signaling pathways downstream genes (P < 0.05), but lowered significantly glucose and total cholesterol contents in the serum and gluconeogenesis activity in the hepatopancreas (P < 0.05). The prawns fed on 1.35 mg Cr kg−1 diets had significantly higher glycolysis activity, the mRNA expression of insulin signaling pathways genes such as insulin receptor substrate 1 and 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase 1, and genes involved in fatty acid synthesis (P < 0.05), but had lower carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 expression (P < 0.05). The optimal chromium supplementation was 1.16 to 1.69 mg Cr kg−1 for Macrobrachium nipponense diets based on growth performance, antioxidant capacity and innate immunity. Conclusively, optimum chromium promotes growth performance, improves antioxidant capacity and immune response. We recommend supplementing 1.16 to 1.69 mg Cr kg−1 for the diet of Macrobrachium nipponense.