Gill Oxidative Stress Protection through the Use of Phytogenics and Galactomannan Oligosaccharides as Functional Additives in Practical Diets for European Sea Bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax ) Juveniles

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the potential of two functional additives as gill endogenous antioxidant capacity boosters in European sea-bass juveniles fed low-FM/FO diets when challenged against physical and biological stressors. For that purpose, two isoenergetic and isonitrogenous diets with low FM (10%) and FO (6%) contents were supplemented with 5000 ppm plant-derived galactomannan-oligosaccharides (GMOS) or 200 ppm of a mixture of garlic and labiate plant essential oils (PHYTO). A control diet was void from supplementation. Fish were fed the experimental diet for nine weeks and subjected to a confinement stress challenge (C challenge) or a confinement stress challenge combined with an exposure to the pathogen (CI challenge). Both GMOS and PHYTO diets attenuated fish stress response, inducing lower circulating plasma cortisol and down-regulating and relative gene-expression levels in the gill. This attenuated stress response was associated with a minor energetic metabolism response in relation to the down-regulation of and gene expression.