Effects of Dietary Vitamin C on Growth, Tolerance to Aquaculture-Related Stressors and Antibody Production in Channel Catfish
Date
1985-08
Authors
Mazik, Patricia M.
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Abstract
The effects of dietary vitamin C on growth, tolerance to aquaculture-related stressors, and antibody production in channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) were investigate by feeding selected amounts of vitamin C . Three experimental diets were prepared with either 0 (vitamin C-free), 78 (normal), or 390 (high level) mg of dietary vitamin C per kg of feed. After 120 days, we subjected fingerlings to several stressors including ammonia, net confinement, and low dissolved oxygen. The effects of dietary vitamin C on growth, caudal fin malformation (tail erosion), and the development of antibody titers after immunization were also studied. Channel catfish fed a vitamin C-free diet grew less, had a higher incidence of fin malformation, had a lower tolerance to ammonia, and died of hypoxia at higher dissolved oxygen levels than the fish fed the normal or high level diets. Fish fed the normal and high level vitamin C diets exhibited similar growth, antibody production, and tolerance to stressors. Dietary vitamin C had no observable effect on the tolerance of the fish to stress induced by confinement in a net.
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Keywords
antibody production, channel catfish, vitamin C, animal nutrition
Citation
Mazik, P. M. (1985). Effects of dietary vitamin C on growth, tolerance to aquaculture-related stressors and antibody production in channel catfish (Unpublished thesis). Southwest Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas.