Toasted Jatropha curcas seed meal in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) diet: Effect on growth, economic performance, haematology, serum biochemistry and liver histology

The effect of dietary inclusion of differently timed dry heat-treated Jatropha curcas on the growth and economic performance of Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, was evaluated in a 56-day feeding trial. Five isonitrogenous and isolipidic dietary treatments (35% crude protein and 10% crude lipid) were made consisting of soybean meal (control) which was replaced by J. curcas seed meal toasted either 5 min or 10 min at 20 and 40% to make other four test diets. A total of 225 juveniles of O. niloticus were acclimatized for a week, weighed and allotted into five dietary treatments. Each treatment was replicated three times with fifteen fish per replicate. Fish were fed 5% body weight on two equal proportions per day for 56 days. Growth data were collected at two-week intervals. The results from the study indicated that there was significant difference (P 0.05) in the growth and economic performance parameters among the fish exposed to different dietary treatments. However, there was no significant variations (P 0.05) in the different growth and economic performance parameters of fish fed CTR and fish fed D520T (5 min toasted, 20%). There was significant reduction in haematological and biochemical parameters of the blood of O. niloticus fed the different dietary treatments containing J. curcas seed meal. Based on economic and physiologic performance, soybean meal in Nile tilapia diet could be replaced up to 40% by 5-minute toasted J. curcass seed meal.