Dietary nano-selenium alleviates heat stress-induced intestinal damage through affecting intestinal antioxidant capacity and microbiota in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Heat stress-induced intestinal damage is a key event in fish pathology. Nano-selenium (nano-Se) shows remarkably high biological activity and low toxicity, making it an ideal and ecological Se formulation; however, to date, the protective effects of nano-Se against heat stress-induced intestinal injury and pertinent molecular mechanisms remain unknown. Herein, rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were fed either a basal diet or basal diet + 5 mg/kg nano-Se. Samples were collected before (18 °C for 9 days; CG18 and Se18 groups) and after (24 °C for 8 h; CG24 and Se24 groups) heat stress treatment. On heat stress exposure, intestinal villus height, muscularis thickness, and goblet cell number decreased, and expression of tight junction proteins (ZO-1, occludin, and claudin-8d) was downregulated; dietary supplementation with nano-Se alleviated these effects. Furthermore, in the presence of nano-Se, catalase activity was elevated, and expression of diverse heat shock proteins (Hsp70b, Hsp90α, and Hsp30), selenoproteins (Gpx1a, Gpx1b1, and Trx), and anti-inflammatory cytokine (TGF-β) was upregulated. In contrast, nano-Se supplementation significantly alleviated the increase of the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β and TNF-α) and the malondialdehyde content. We also observed that heat stress markedly increased the relative abundance of Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, Methylobacterium, Akkermansia, and Deinococcus and decreased that of Proteobacteria; nano-Se supplementation restored these changes, making their distribution similar to that in the control group. Overall, our findings suggest that nano-Se plays a protective role against heat stress-induced intestinal damage in rainbow trout by promoting the recovery of antioxidant enzyme activity, enhancing protein repair, alleviating inflammatory responses, and restoring intestinal microbiota composition.