Dietary medicinal herbs improve growth performance, fatty acid utilization, and stress recovery of Japanese flounder

Abstract

Some effects of dietary medicinal herbs mixture (HM), Massa medicata fermentata, Crataegi fructus, Artemisia capillaries, and Cnidium officinale, in the proportions 2:2:1:1 were identified in juvenile Japanese flounder Paralichthys olivaceus. In an 8-week feeding trial, fish were fed with 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, and 1.0% HM in a moist diet composed of horse mackerel and an artificial diet in equal parts. Fish fed the diets with 0.3, 0.5, and 1.0% HM showed higher weight gain and feed efficiency than fish in 0.1 and 0% HM feed groups. No significant differences were found in survival, feed intake, final carcass proximate composition, hemoglobin and hematocrit levels, plasma total cholesterol level, and alanine aminotransferase activity among the dietary treatments. Fish fed with 0.3, 0.5, and 1.0% HM showed higher total carcass unsaturated fatty acid content and docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3) level, and plasma high density lipoprotein-cholesterol level, but lower carcass saturated fatty acid content and plasma aspartate aminotrasferase activities than the control group. Moreover, a 10-min air exposure test with five times repeat, and an anesthesia test for 2 min with 200 p.p.m. 2-phenoxyethanol, also revealed lower mortality and lower recovery time in 0.3, 0.5, and 1.0% HM groups than the control group at the end of the trial. These results indicate that the medicinal herb mixture is useful to improve growth, fatty acid utilization, and stress recovery in the Japanese flounder.KEY WORDS: growth performance, Japanese flounder, medicinal herb, n-3 highly unsaturated fatty acid (n-3 HUFA), stress recovery.

Evaluation of the Immunomodulatory Effects of Silymarin Extract (<I>Silybum Marianum</I>) on Some Immune Parameters of Rainbow Trout, <I>Oncorhynchus Mykiss</I> (Actinopterygii: Salmoniformes: Salmonidae)

“…Increase in haemoglobin content (Hb), haematocrit, and numbers of leukocytes and thrombocyte were reported in Nile tilapia (Shalaby et al 2006), hybrid tilapia (Ndong and Fall 2011) fed diet enriched by garlic. These results are in agreement with previous research in which feeding with other herbal supplemented feed led to an increase in erythrocyte-and leukocyte count, haemoglobin level and haematocrit (Martins et al 2002, Ji et al 2007). …”

Effect of mixed use of thyme and fennel oils on biochemical properties and electrolytes in rainbow trout as a response to Yersinia ruckeri infection

“…They found reduced glucose concentrations in the aquatic animals fed with herbal immunostimulant diets. Furthermore, Ji et al (2007) reported low blood glucose concentrations and plasma glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase in juvenile Japanese flounder fed with herbal mixtures. The decrease of glucose concentrations might be due to the capability of plant oils to reduce the effects of stressors.…”

Effects of dietary Bacillus and medicinal herbs on the growth, digestive enzyme activity, and serum biochemical parameters of the shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei

“…Studies have shown that when these bacteria are administered to the shrimp as probiotics, growth, survival, digestive enzyme activity, and apparent digestibility coefficients of nutrients were improved and immunity was enhanced (Rengpipat et al 1998;Rengpipat et al 2000;Saeed et al 2006;Lin et al 2004). Medicinal herbs (MH) have been used as popular medicines to secure health and longevity in land mammals and humans in Asia, especially China, India, Japan, and Korea (Ji et al 2007b). There is a developing interest in using MH as a kind of dietary supplement in aquaculture, and in showing the positive effects on growth and the immune response (Ji et al 2007b;Jung et al 2002).…”

“…Medicinal herbs (MH) have been used as popular medicines to secure health and longevity in land mammals and humans in Asia, especially China, India, Japan, and Korea (Ji et al 2007b). There is a developing interest in using MH as a kind of dietary supplement in aquaculture, and in showing the positive effects on growth and the immune response (Ji et al 2007b;Jung et al 2002). MH can improve the quantity of microflora in the intestine by increasing some good microbes and inhibiting some microbial pathogens (Liu et al 2004).…”