
Nutrition during periconception and early development can modulate metabolic routes to prepare the offspring for adverse conditions through a process known as nutritional programming. In gilthead seabream, replacement of fish oil (FO)by linseed oil (LO) in broodstock diets, improves growth in the 4-month-old offspring challenged with a low FO and low fishmeal (FM) diets for 1 month. The present study further investigated the effects of broodstock feeding on the same offspring when they were 16-month-old and were challenged for a second time with the low FM and low FO diet for 2 months. The results showed that parental feeding with moderate FO replacement by LO combined with juvenile feeding at 4-month-old with low FM and FO diets significantly (P<0.05) improved offspring growth and feed utilisation of low FM/FO diets even when they are 16 months old, in the verge of their first reproductive season. The liver fatty acid composition was significantly affected by broodstock or reminder diets as well as by their interaction. Moreover, reduction of LC-PUFA and increase in ALA and LA in broodstock diets lead to a significant down-regulation of hepatic lpl (P<0.001) and elovl6 (P<0.01). Besides, fads2values were positively correlated to hepatic levels of 18:4n-3, 18:3n-6, 20:5n-3, 22:6n-3 and 22:5n-6. Thus, this study demonstrated the long-term nutritional programming of gilthead seabream through broodstock-feeding, and the effect of feeding a “reminder” diet during juvenile stages to improved utilization of low FM/FO diets and fish growth, and regulation of gene expression along the fish life-cycle.
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