Influence of supplementation of Spirulina platensis on nutritional, physiological and metabolic performance of GIFT Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

An eight weeks feeding trial was conducted to assess the influence of supplementation of Spirulina platensis on nutritional, physiological and metabolic performance of GIFT Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Fingerlings (120; Initial body weight 3.4±0.01 g) were randomly assigned to four dietary treatments, viz. control (0%), T1 (1%), T2 (3%) and T3 (5% S. platensis meal) in triplicates. The animals were fed with a ration at 5% body weight twice a day throughout the trial. The results indicated that, final body proximate composition, growth performance and nutrients digestibility coefficient were higher in T2 group compared to other treatments and the control. At this level of inclusion, fish digestive enzymes, such as amylase, protease and lipase were significantly higher between control and treatments however, metabolic enzyme activities were not influenced by dietary treatments. The liver and intestinal histology were not affected by dietary treatments, however the intestinal tissues showed a higher intestinal villi length and muscular layer thickness than the control group. It can be concluded that, S. plantesis meal can be supplemented up to 3% without compromising the overall performance of GIFT tilapia.