Gut microbial diversity and composition of Indian white shrimp (Penaeus indicus)

Abstract The endemic Indian white shrimp (Penaeus indicus) is an economically important shrimp species, distributed in the Indo-West Pacific region. Knowledge of gut microbial composition helps in dietary interventions to ensure improved health and production. Here we analyzed V3-V4 hypervariable regions of the 16S rRNA gene to examine intestinal microbiota in the wild and farmed P. indicus. The study revealed Proteobacteria, Fusobacteria, Tenericutes, and Bacteroidetes, were the dominant phyla in both the groups; though the differences in relative abundance were evident. The dominant genera in case of the wild group were Photobacterium (29.5%) followed by Propionigenium (13.9%), Hypnocyclicus (13.7%) and Vibrio (11.1%); while Vibrio (46.5%), Catenococcus (14%), Propionigenium (10.3%) and Photobacterium (8.7%) were dominant in the farmed group. The results of the study suggest the role of environment on the relative abundance of gut bacteria. This is the first report characterizing gut microbial diversity in P. indicus, which can be used to understand the role of gut microbiota in health, nutrition, reproduction, and growth.