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Volume 15
Issue 13
10.3390/foods15132391
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Dietary Inulin Modulates Intestinal Health and Muscle Nutritional Composition in Juvenile Silver Pomfret (Pampus argenteus)

by
Cuizhi Zhang
1,†,
Jiabao Hu
1,†,
Linying Wang
1,
Zhouji Fang
1,
Suling Sun
2,
Man Zhang
1,
Yongyong Li
1,
Yajun Wang
1,* and
Lingling Jia
1,*
1
College of Food Science and Engineering, College of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315832, China
2
Institute of Quality Safety and Nutrition of Agricultural Products, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou 310021, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Foods 2026, 15(13), 2391; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15132391
Submission received: 13 May 2026 / Accepted: 3 July 2026 / Published: 5 July 2026
(This article belongs to the Section Foods of Marine Origin)
Versions Notes

Abstract

The silver pomfret (Pampus argenteus) is a high-value marine food fish, but its aquaculture is limited by juvenile intestinal immaturity, characterized by impaired digestion, barrier dysfunction, and microbial dysbiosis. This study evaluated whether early-life dietary inulin could improve intestinal health and muscle nutritional composition. After an 8-week feeding trial, fish fed a 5 g/kg inulin-supplemented diet showed improved growth performance, as reflected by higher final body weight (+17.2%), WGR (+18.5%), and SGR (+6.4%) than the control group. These benefits were associated with enhanced intestinal morphology, increased α-amylase and lipase activities, upregulated expression of tight junction genes, and a remodeled gut microbiota. These gut-associated changes were accompanied by improved selected muscle compositional traits. Specifically, inulin supplementation enriched essential amino acids, including methionine and threonine, as well as flavor-related amino acids, such as glutamate, glycine, and serine. Meanwhile, the muscle lipid profile was also modified, as reflected by reduced levels of selected saturated fatty acids and increased levels of monounsaturated fatty acids, particularly oleic acid. Collectively, our findings suggest that early-life dietary supplementation with 5 g/kg inulin may support intestinal homeostasis-related indicators and improve selected muscle nutritional traits in farmed silver pomfret.

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MDPI and ACS Style

Zhang, C.; Hu, J.; Wang, L.; Fang, Z.; Sun, S.; Zhang, M.; Li, Y.; Wang, Y.; Jia, L. Dietary Inulin Modulates Intestinal Health and Muscle Nutritional Composition in Juvenile Silver Pomfret (Pampus argenteus). Foods 2026, 15, 2391. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15132391

AMA Style

Zhang C, Hu J, Wang L, Fang Z, Sun S, Zhang M, Li Y, Wang Y, Jia L. Dietary Inulin Modulates Intestinal Health and Muscle Nutritional Composition in Juvenile Silver Pomfret (Pampus argenteus). Foods. 2026; 15(13):2391. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15132391

Chicago/Turabian Style

Zhang, Cuizhi, Jiabao Hu, Linying Wang, Zhouji Fang, Suling Sun, Man Zhang, Yongyong Li, Yajun Wang, and Lingling Jia. 2026. "Dietary Inulin Modulates Intestinal Health and Muscle Nutritional Composition in Juvenile Silver Pomfret (Pampus argenteus)" Foods 15, no. 13: 2391. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15132391

APA Style

Zhang, C., Hu, J., Wang, L., Fang, Z., Sun, S., Zhang, M., Li, Y., Wang, Y., & Jia, L. (2026). Dietary Inulin Modulates Intestinal Health and Muscle Nutritional Composition in Juvenile Silver Pomfret (Pampus argenteus). Foods, 15(13), 2391. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15132391

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