Background:

Some diet additives have become alternatives to achieve higher yields within the productively sustainable, organic, and ecological margins. Hence, nutrients and microorganisms can be added to the diet for fish immunity improvements, by using the nutrients in the feed, which lead to a positive animal performance. Accordingly, the aim of this paper was to gather information related to the utilization of additives as immunostimulant in tilapia (Oreochromis ssp.), and their physiological performance in the body.

Development:

Many of these immunostimulants are microorganisms or habitual nutrients in the diet, such as polysaccharides, proteins or lipids, which at high concentrations are capable of creating a stimulating effect, speeding disease resistance through specific or unspecific mechanisms of immunological response, thus becoming primary prophylactic agents.

Conclusions:

The use of additives as immunostimulants helps prevent the occurrence of common diseases in tilapia culture, by modulating the intestinal system in the different species of genus Oreochromis, thus enhancing the unspecific immune response, and, in turn, some processes like individual growth, feeding efficiency, and stress tolerance can be favored.