Evaluation of the Efficacy of Probiotics in vitro Against Vibrio parahaemolyticus , Causative Agent of Acute Hepatopancreatic Necrosis Disease in Shrimp

Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) is a devastating disease affecting aquaculture shrimp industry around the world. Probiotics may provide an effective approach to reduce the detrimental impact of this disease in shrimp ponds. The present study was conducted to determine the inhibitory effects of probiotics against the Vibrio parahaemolyticus strain that causes AHPND. Probiotic solutions (whole microbial cultures and supernatants) consisting of three microbial cultures including Lactobacillus casei, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Rhodopseudomonas palustris individually and in various combinations were tested against V. parahaemolyticus. Disk diffusion tests and challenge tests in liquid media were conducted. Findings revealed inhibition zones with greater diameters in disks treated with whole microbial cultures (min: 7.83 mm, max: 11.33 mm) in comparison to those treated with only supernatants (min: 7.00 mm, max: 8.50 mm). Results from the challenge test showed greater inactivation of the pathogen after 48 h (6.56 ± 0.07 to 5.43 ± 0.03 log10 reduction) when treated with L. casei and L. casei in combination with other two probiotics. In conclusion, the probiotic solutions that included L. casei, the combination of L. casei and R. palustris, and the combination of L. casei, S. cerevisiae and R. palustris have the potential for inhibiting AHPND in shrimp aquaculture.