article · Aquaculture Reports
Intensive aquaculture often increases disease risk, making practical feed additives valuable. This study evaluated the effects of dietary raffinose on the growth, antioxidant status, and immune responses of Nile tilapia. Fish were fed five diets containing 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, or 2 grammes of raffinose per kilogramme of feed over a 60-day period. Supplementation at 1 gramme per kilogramme improved final body weight, overall weight gain, and specific growth rate, whilst lowering the feed conversion ratio compared with the control. Raffinose also enhanced antioxidant enzyme activities, specifically superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase, and lowered malondialdehyde levels. Immune markers, including lysozyme activity, phagocytic activity, and phagocytic index, were boosted at inclusion levels between 1 and 2 grammes per kilogramme. Overall, an inclusion rate of 0.85 to 1.37 grammes per kilogramme is recommended.
Fish kept under high-density commercial rearing conditions frequently suffer from stress and infectious diseases. Adding natural compounds like raffinose to fish diets helps strengthen internal antioxidant defences and boost immunity, whilst also improving feed efficiency. This approach provides a practical feeding strategy to support the health and growth performance of Nile tilapia, a globally important farmed species.
This research is relevant to aquafeed manufacturers and commercial tilapia producers seeking functional feed ingredients to improve fish vitality. Evaluated across a 60-day feeding trial, the findings represent applied and tested research with a clearly defined optimal inclusion range of 0.85 to 1.37 grammes per kilogramme. Real-world adoption would require commercial feed mills to formulate test batches and evaluate production costs against gains in growth and survival on working fish farms.
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Infectious diseases usually occur in response to the highly intensive rearing conditions in fish farms. The use of feed additives is still one of the most practical options in the field of aquaculture. Therefore, this study aimed at evaluating the impact of raffinose on the growth rate, antioxidative status, and immunity of Nile tilapia. For 60 days, fish fed five test diets with raffinose at 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 g/kg. The FBW was increased by feeding raffinose at 0.5 or 1 g/kg levels over the control, whereas no significances were observed among the other groups. Feeding tilapia with raffinose at 1 g/kg increased the WG and SGR and decreased the FCR with regards to the control. The activity of SOD was enhanced by feeding raffinose at all levels, while GPX and SOD were improved by 1 or 1.5 g/kg levels over the control. On the contrary, the concentration of MDA was decreased by raffinose, and the lowest levels were observed by 1 or 1.5 g/kg levels. The lysozyme activity was increased by level 1 g/kg over the other levels without significant differences with 1.5 g/kg. The phagocytic activity and index were also boosted by feeding raffinose at 1, 1.5, and 2 g/kg levels over 0 and 0.5 g/kg. Taking together, dietary raffinose increases Nile tilapia growth performances, and immune responses and 0.85–1.37 g raffinose per kg diet is recommended for this species nutrition.
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DOI: 10.1016/j.aqrep.2020.100457
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