EVALUATION OF VOLATILE OILS AS ANTIBACTERIALS DESIGNED TO PISCICULTURE AND ADMINISTRED IN FEED.

Abstract

The use of antibiotics is the main treatment employed for the control of bacterial diseases in fish, hence their wide use leads to the development and selection of resistant bacteria, which may lead to contamination of other animals and man. Additionally, the lack of specific national legislation on the regulation of veterinary drugs for use in aquaculture, as well as the obvious need for the use of this resource in the treatment of diseases has led the farmer to employ antimicrobial drugs available in the market for other animal species, such such as cattle, pigs, poultry and others. Social pressure to reduce the use of synthetic antibiotics in fish farming has encouraged the search for other substances to improve the production, ensure consumer safety and not cause environmental damage. In this context, the volatile oils and plant extracts has received high attention as an alternative to the use of synthetic molecules. The antimicrobial activity of the volatile oils known for years and its mechanism of action is usually the same as synthetic antibiotics, but there is no evidence to cause bacterial resistance. In view of the problem of development of bacterial resistance is an urgent need to establish rules for the rational use of antibiotics and the use of alternative therapies for the control of bacterial diseases. Among the bacterial diseases of fish important in Brazil include: Streptococcus sp. Flavobacterium columnare and Aeromonas hydrophila. The administration of the volatile oils in the form of fish food requires a protection against losses by volatilization, oxidation reactions, reduction and rearrangement, which is usually achieved by microencapsulation process. Thus, the aim of this project is to develop an antibacterial-based volatile oils, safe and effective against the bacteria Streptococcus agalactiae, Flavobacterium columnare and Aeromonas hydrophila for use in fish farming.