Nutritional evaluation of autoclaved Salicornia bigelovii Torr. seed meal supplemented with varying levels of cholesterol on growth, nutrient utilization and survival of the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

Abstract

A 7-week feeding trial was conducted to investigate the effects of replacing fish meal by autoclaved Salicornia bigelovii seed meal (SSM), supplemented with varying cholesterol levels, on feed intake, growth performance, body composition and survival of Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus fingerlings under laboratory conditions. SSM was tested at different inclusion levels (0, 25, 50 and 65 % of total protein), using different levels of cholesterol supplementation (0, 1, 2 and 2.6 %) in isonitrogenous (420 g Kg-1 DM crude protein) and isocaloric (18.52 MJ Kg-1 DM) fish meal-Soybean meal-based diets. Triplicate groups of fish (374 ± 15 mg, initial fresh body weight) were randomly stocked in 18 20-L plastic tanks at a stocking density of 20 fish per tank and were fed to satiation by hand five times a day, 7 days per week. Feed intake, growth performance and survival were significantly affected by the SSM inclusion level and the cholesterol supplementation. The lower growth performance of fish fed diets containing SSM without cholesterol is thought to result from the presence of saponins in the meal. When cholesterol is added, the saponin-induced toxicity is ameliorated, which is evident from growth and survival responses, up to 50 % of SSM protein inclusion. At the highest level of SSM inclusion (65 %), growth and survival were very poor, despite the addition of cholesterol. The results of the present work suggest that autoclaved SSM can partially substitute fish protein in diets for O. niloticus fingerlings at levels up to 50 % of the dietary protein if 2 % cholesterol is added in fish meal-SBM-based diets.