Effects of sodium butyrate nanoparticles on the hemato-immunological indices, hepatic antioxidant capacity, and gene expression responses in Oreochromis niloticus

• DOI: 10.1016/j.fsi.2021.10.039
• Publication Date: 2021-10-28T17:36:59Z
• Authors: Hany M.R. Abdel-L...; Basma M. Hendam; Mustafa Shukry; Nagi M. El-Shafai; Ibrahim M. El-Meh...; Mahmoud A.O. Dawood; Mohsen Abdel-Tawwab
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; Gene Expression; Cichlids; Animal Feed; Antioxidants; Diet; Fish Diseases; 03 medical and health sciences; Liver; Dietary Supplements; Animals; Butyric Acid; Cytokines; Nanoparticles; 14. Life underwater

Recently, nanotechnology has been greatly developed to provide the aquaculture industry with new beneficial nanomaterials to improve the health and welfare of aquatic animals. Herein, an eight-week experiment was designed to examine the dietary impacts of sodium butyrate nanoparticles (SB-NPs) on the hematological profile, blood proteins, immunological indices, antioxidant capacity, and expression analysis of cytokines and antioxidant-related genes in Oreochromis niloticus. Fish were randomly assigned into 5 experimental groups (3 replicates per group) and were fed diets supplemented with 5 levels of SB-NPs as 0.0 (control), 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 mg kg-1. The results revealed that supplementing diets with SB-NPs (1.0-2.0 mg kg-1) significantly elevated erythrocyte and leukocyte counts, hemoglobin concentrations, hematocrit values, total albumin, globulin, serum lysozyme activities, and total immunoglobulin M values compared with the control group. Notably, the highest levels of the parameters mentioned above were noticed in the group fed diet supplemented with 1.5 mg kg-1 SB-NPs. Moreover, dietary SB-NPs modulated the fish's antioxidant defense mechanisms, whereas there was a significant increase in hepatic superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase enzyme activities along with a significant decline in hepatic malondialdehyde concentrations in fish groups fed diets supplemented with SB-NPs (1.0-2.0 mg kg-1). A significant upregulation of antioxidant enzyme genes (gpx and sod), anti-inflammatory cytokine (il-10), and pro-inflammatory cytokines (il-1β and il-8) were noticed in liver tissues of SB-NPs groups (0.5-1.5 mg kg-1). The highest mRNA expression folds of the above genes were recorded in the fish group fed diet supplemented with 1.5 mg kg-1 SB-NPs. In this context, we hypothesized that dietary supplementation with SB-NPs can boost the antioxidant status and immunity of O. niloticus. However, further research studies are still recommended.