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Microbial ecology of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) hatcheries: impacts of the built environment on fish mucosal microbiota

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-20, 15:27 authored by Minich, JJ, Poore, GD, Khattapan JantawongsriKhattapan Jantawongsri, Johnston, CJ, Bowie, K, John BowmanJohn Bowman, Knight, R, Barbara NowakBarbara Nowak, Allen, EE
Successful rearing of fish in hatcheries is critical for conservation, recreational fishing, commercial fishing through wild stock enhancements, and aquaculture production. Flowthrough (FT) hatcheries require more water than recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), which enable up to 99% of their water to be recycled, thus significantly reducing environmental impacts. Here, we evaluated the biological and physical microbiome interactions of three Atlantic salmon hatcheries (RAS n = 2, FT n = 1). Gill, skin, and digesta from six juvenile fish along with tank biofilms and water were sampled from tanks in each of the hatcheries (60 fish across 10 tanks) to assess the built environment and mucosal microbiota using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The water and tank biofilm had more microbial richness than fish mucus, while skin and digesta from RAS fish had 2 times the richness of FT fish. Body sites each had unique microbiomes (P < 0.001) and were influenced by hatchery system type (P < 0.001), with RAS being more similar. A strong association between the tank and fish microbiome was observed. Water and tank biofilm richness was positively correlated with skin and digesta richness. Strikingly, the gill, skin, and digesta communities were more similar to that in the origin tank biofilm than those in all other experimental tanks, suggesting that the tank biofilm has a direct influence on fish-associated microbial communities. Lastly, microbial diversity and mucous cell density were positively associated with fish growth and length. The results from this study provide evidence for a link between the tank microbiome and the fish microbiome, with the skin microbiome as an important intermediate.

History

Publication title

Applied and Environmental Microbiology

Volume

86

Issue

12

Article number

e00411-20

Number

e00411-20

Pagination

1-19

ISSN

1098-5336

Department/School

Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies

Publisher

American Society for Microbiology

Place of publication

United States

Rights statement

Copyright 2020 American Society for Microbiology

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Aquaculture fin fish (excl. tuna)

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