Probióticos na aquicultura

Abstract

Use of chemotherapeutic substances with the objective of improving the performance characteristics of the animals has been adopted for some time. They are substances known as growth promoters or production activators. Among these products, antibiotics are used on a large scale. But, with the consumer market more and more demanding, the inclusion of this sort of substance has been avoided. A feasible alternative to replace antibiotics is the use of probiotics. The classical definition of “probiotic” is given as “organisms and substances of bacterial origin which contribute toward the equilibrium of the intestinal flora supporting its growth and promoting this way resistance to diseases. The present results support the efficacy of the use of probiotics as production activators during particular phases of production. The environment of animals’ life is vital issue in determining the sort of probiotic to be used. In most of the terrestrial species, the early development takes place in an amniotic medium, which serves as a protection. But for fishes and other aquatic organisms, the larvae which hatch from the spawnings do not have their digestive tract complete, their being, therefore, liable to undergo contaminations by pathogenic microorganisms. So, the use of probiotics becomes interesting in this developmental phase. The environment in which the fishes live exercises an influence in a significant manner on the composition of the microbial population of the digestive tract. These animals do not regulate the body temperature and the association of microorganisms in the intestinal lumen can range according to temperature. In this way, the water in the tanks and the feeding itself of these animals can supply microorganisms which will associate to those present in the intestinal tract. The knowledge about the use of probiotics for water-living organisms is scarce, although their efficiency is corroborated.