Energy efficiency of digestible protein, fat and carbohydrate utilisation for growth in rainbow trout and Nile tilapia

Soluble non-starch polysaccharides in fish feed: implications for fish metabolism

Because of their unique glycosidic bond structure, non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) are difficult for the stomach to break down. NSP can be classified as insoluble NSP (iNSP, fiber, lignin, etc.) and soluble NSP (sNSP, oligosaccharides, β-glucan, pectin, fermentable fiber, inulin, plant-derived polysaccharides, etc.). sNSP is viscous, fermentable, and soluble. Gut microbiota may catabolize sNSP, which can then control fish lipid, glucose, and protein metabolism and impact development rates. This review examined the most recent studies on the impacts of various forms of sNSP on the nutritional metabolism of various fish in order to comprehend the effects of sNSP on fish. According to certain investigations, sNSP can enhance fish development, boost the activity of digestive enzymes, reduce blood sugar and cholesterol, enhance the colonization of good gut flora, and modify fish nutrition metabolism. In-depth research on the mechanism of action is also lacking in most studies on the effects of sNSP on fish metabolism. It is necessary to have a deeper comprehension of the underlying processes by which sNSP induce host metabolism. This is crucial to address the main issue of the sensible use of carbohydrates in fish feed.

Corn substitution by mesquite bean flour (Prosopis juliflora) maintains growth and improves protein metabolism of Nile tilapia juveniles (Oreochromis niloticus)

The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of mesquite bean flour (Prosopis juliflora) as an energy ingredient in extruded diets for juvenile Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Two experiments were carried out: the first consisted of a study to evaluate the chemical composition and digestibility of the energy and nutrients of MBF; the second consisted of a growth test, in which juveniles consumed diets containing different proportions of corn substitution by MBF, in which zootechnical, hematological, physiological, and metabolic variables were evaluated. It was observed that MBF has a chemical composition similar to corn, as well as the apparent digestibility of energy and nutrients. The higher sucrose/starch ratio of the ingredient stands out, as well as the difference in digestibility (p < 0.05) between the predominant carbohydrates 87.63 and 99.25% for starch and sucrose, respectively. In the growth assay, no difference was observed between zootechnical variables (p > 0.05), and sucrase and alkaline phosphatase activities were increased (p < 0.05), which was not observed for amylase and lipase (p > 0.05). The hematological variables did not change (p > 0.05). Metabolic variables indicate a reduction in gluconeogenesis from amino acids, as can be seen by the reduction in liver transaminase levels (ALT and AST) and glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH), as well as the greater availability of free amino acids in plasmas (p < 0.05). Thus, it can be said that MBF has a high nutritional value and can totally replace corn in diets for juvenile tilapia and the metabolic findings indicate a potential protein-sparing effect.

Glucose Injection Into Yolk Positively Modulates Intermediary Metabolism and Growth Performance in Juvenile Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

The aim of this study was to explore for the first time in omnivorous fish the concept of nutritional programming. A nutritional stimulus was accomplished by microinjecting 2 M glucose into yolk reserves during the alevin stage in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). At the molecular level in fry, at 1 week post-injection, glucose stimuli were associated with the up-regulation of genes involved in glycolysis (pklr, hk1, hk2, and pkma), glucose transport (glut4) pathways and down-regulation of genes related to gluconeogenesis (g6pca1, g6pca2, and pck1) and amino acid catabolism (asat, alat) (P < 0.05), demonstrating that the larvae well received the glucose stimulus at a molecular level. Moreover, 20 weeks after glucose injection, early glucose stimuli were always linked to permanent effects in juvenile fish, as reflected by a higher level of glycolytic enzymes [gck, hk1 and hk2 at both mRNA and enzymatic levels and pyruvate kinase (PK) activity]. Finally, the effects of the glucose stimulus history were also examined in fish fed with two different dietary carbohydrate/protein levels (medium-carbohydrate diet, CHO-M; high-carbohydrate diet, CHO-H) in juvenile fish (during weeks 20-24). As expected, the CHO-H diet induced the expression of glycolytic and lipogenic genes (gck, pklr, hk1, hk2, fpkma, fasn, and g6pd) and suppressed the expression of gluconeogenic and amino acid catabolism genes (g6pca1, pck1, pck2, asat, alat, and gdh). Nevertheless, the early glucose stimulus led to persistent up-regulation of glycolytic enzymes (gck, pklr, hk1, and hk2) at both the mRNA and enzyme activity levels and glucose transporter glut4 as well as lower gluconeogenic pck1 gene expression (P < 0.05). More interestingly, the early glucose stimulus was associated with a better growth performance of juvenile fish irrespective of the diets. These permanent changes were associated with DNA hypomethylation in the liver and muscles, suggesting the existence of epigenetic mechanisms at the origin of programming. In conclusion, for the first time in tilapia, early glucose stimuli were found to be clearly associated with a positive metabolic programming effect later in life, improving the growth performance of the fish.