Potential of laboratory developed marine bacterial consortium as antibacterial and growth promoting agent in mariculture

Mariculture is the fastest growing subsector of aquaculture in India, and it provides a significant contribution to animal production and is of economic importance. Technology of marine cage culture in India is pioneered by ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute for providing an additional livelihood for the upliftment of economic status of coastal communities, and this transfer of technology was successfully implemented throughout coastal India. Indian Pompano, Trachinotus mookalee is the most potential species for marine cage farming in India. Management of water quality and fish health in culture systems is a great challenge in mariculture. Emergence of environmental issues and disease occurrence becomes inevitable due to the increasing demand for intensification and commercialization in mariculture production. In order to manage the culture systems for attaining sustainable production, application of probiotics is the best tool, to achieve better growth rate, survival and disease resistance of fish. Marine microorganisms are identified as potential source of enzymes which may enhance host digestion since they have greater capacity of adhesion to gastrointestinal mucus and tissues. There are several reports of research works on the application of probiotics in aquaculture though very few studies relate its usage in finfish culture. Several commercial probiotic bacteria are being used in aquaculture industry, especially in shrimp aquaculture, but the role of its application in marine finfish culture needs to be established. Hence, the present study was undertaken to evaluate the efficacy of marine probiotic consortium (MPC) (developed in laboratory) on survival and growth of Trachinotus mookalee