Development of Novel Calcium Receptor Based Mineral Supplementation Technologies For Inland Shrimp Aquaculture

Recent studies have demonstrated the importance of ionic composition of water and diets used in inland marine shrimp aquaculture. We propose to develop a feed and/or water additive approach to address this issue by using our knowledge of calcium-sensing receptors (CaSRs) in crustaceans and their roles in osmoregulation, nutrient sensing, and gowth. By supplementing diets with specific CaSR modulators over a range of environmental conditions, we propose to develop an application to address ionic deficiencies or imbalances in inland marine shrimp aquaculture in the U.S. Inland marine shrimp aquaculture is a growing market in the U.S. and technological improvements are necessary to compete. Our goal is to understand the commercially relevant interactions between important dietaray and environmental CaSR modulatory compounds and their effects on growth performance and osmoregulatory stress. Several of the biological and economic problems associated with inland shrimp culture in the U.S. are at least partially due to variable ion deficiencies and imbalances that occur due to the source of water and salts used at each culture facility. We propose to develop a product composed of feed and/or water additives applied under specific environmental contexts that will enhance the performance of U.S. shrimp production. We will test a combination of known modulators of CaSRs in crustaceans and monitor performance over a range of environmental conditions. This will provide the baseline data necessary to determine feasibility of this approach, particularly as it relates to inland recirculating culture of marine shrimp.