Growth enhancement of tropical abalone, Haliotis asinina L, through probiotic supplementation

The use of probionts has been considered to be an effective technology in enhancing growth performances and survival rate of aquaculture species. This study examined the effect of three probiotic candidates (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens MA228, Enterobacter ludwigii MA208, and Pediococcus acidilactici MA160) on the growth and survival rates of juvenile abalone, Haliotis asinina L). The three probionts were incorporated as a mixture of two or three onto Gracilaria sp. and fed to juvenile abalone for 62 days. Then, specific growth rate (SGR), feed conversion ratio (FCR), and survival rate (SR) were measured. The results showed that the increments in weight and length were significantly higher (P < 0.05) in the abalone that received a mixture of probionts. While feed conversion ratio (FCR) was significantly lower than the control. The supplementation of B. amyloliquefaciens MA228 and E. ludwigii MA208 (2P) in the Gracilaria sp. resulted in an increase of 9% SGR in terms of weight and decreased FCR value 0.2 unit, compared with the control. However, there was no difference in the survival rates between the mix of 2 and 3 probionts, > 72% among the treatments and control. Our study shows that the growth of juvenile abalone could be improved through probiotic supplementation. Thus, E. ludwigii MA208 and B. amyloliquefaciens MA228 are considered potential probionts which can be used to shorten culture period of abalone aquaculture.