Dietary sodium butyrate supplementation alleviates summer heat stress in large yellow croaker through gut-liver axis regulation of lipid metabolism
摘要
This study employed a multi-omics approach—integrating transcriptomics, metabolomics, and gut microbiota analysis—to investigate the effects of dietary sodium butyrate (SB; 0, 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.4%) on large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea) under heat stress. SB supplementation significantly enhanced growth performance, with the 0.2% and 0.4% groups achieving weight gains of 486.5 ± 45.1% and 482.5 ± 50.4%, respectively, markedly higher than the 266.3 ± 33.5% in the control group. Survival rates were also significantly improved. Multi-omics analysis revealed that SB mediates its benefits through a coordinated “gut microbiota–gut–liver” axis: it remodeled the gut microbiota by increasing the Firmicutes/Bacteroidota ratio; activated hepatic PPAR-α/γ signaling pathways to upregulate fatty acid β-oxidation genes (acadvl, cpt1b, acadm) while suppressing synthesis genes (acsl4, scd); and induced a distinct lipid allocation pattern. This was evidenced by enriched α-linolenic acid metabolites in the intestine and depleted long-chain PUFAs (e.g., EPA, ARA) in the liver, indicating enhanced intestinal absorption and hepatic consumption, thereby reducing lipid storage. Our findings demonstrate that dietary sodium butyrate simultaneously improves growth, thermal resilience, and metabolic health in large yellow croaker, offering a viable precision nutrition strategy to enhance aquaculture sustainability in the face of global warming.