Effects of dietary β-glucan on maternal immunity and fry quality of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

The effects of dietary β-glucan on fry quality of rainbow trout were studied. Two feeding trials were conducted with rainbow trout broodstock (trial 1) and fry (trial 2). The experimental diets contained 0 (control), 0.1% and 0.2% β-1,3/1,6 yeast glucan. In trial 1, 45 female rainbow trout were randomly divided into three experimental groups (15 fish per group) and were fed with one of the three experimental diets over three months prior to spawning. In trial 2, fry descending from the control fed broodstock were allocated to three different treatment groups: control fed (L1, considered as the control), 0.1% β-glucan fed (L2), and 0.2% β-glucan fed (L3). The fry from the 0.1% β-glucan fed mothers were divided into two dietary groups: control fed (L4) and 0.1% β-glucan fed (L5), and the fry from 0.2% β-glucan fed females were also allocated to two treatment groups: control fed (L6) and 0.2% β-glucan fed (L7). In trial 2, the fry were fed with one of the experimental diets for two months. Brood fish fed the diet with 0.2% β-glucan exhibited the highest white blood cell (WBC) value, ACH50 and lysozyme activity (P