The effect of dietary bamboo charcoal supplementation on growth and serum biochemical parameters of juvenile common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.)

This study investigated the effect of dietary bamboo charcoal (BC) supplementation on the growth performance and health status of juvenile common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.). A 63-day feeding trial was carried out wherein the carp were reared on diets containing increasing levels of BC (0%, 0.5%, 1%, 2% and 4%). Treatment with BC did not produce any obvious effect (p>.05) on the growth performance of the juvenile common carp and on the overall muscle fatty acid composition. However, significant improvements (p<.05) were reported on serum indicators such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total protein (TP), triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein (HDL) and glucose (GLU) with the 4% inclusion level producing the most beneficial effects without adversely affecting some of the indices that were not improved at this level. Improvements were further observed in the intestinal villus length and goblet cells numbers at 4% supplementation. Although some evidence of potential toxicity exists, the overall findings of this study suggest that supplementation of common carp diets with 4% BC has a potential to enhance serum biochemical indices, intestinal functions and fatty acid content in common carp. Furthermore, while no positive effects were observed on the growth performance and total muscle fatty acid composition, no adverse effects were reported on these parameters. Therefore, BC has the potential to be used as a feed additive in the diets of juvenile common carp to improve health status and intestinal function.