Improved Growth and Nutritional Quality of Pangas Catfish,Pangasius hypophthalmus (Sauvage, 1878) by EnzymeSupplementation

Abstract

Pangas catfish, Pangasius hypophthalmus is one of the most widely cultured fish species in Asia. The growth and flesh quality of fish depend largely on the quality and composition of feed. Inclusion of exogenous enzyme can improve the palatability and digestibility of feed. However, there is a lack of research on the use of exogenous enzymes in fish diet for improved growth and nutritional quality of fish. Thus, in the current study, the effects of enzyme inclusion in fish diet were evaluated using pangas catfish as an experimental animal. The study was conducted in a laboratory condition with a flow-through system where 12 plastic tanks with 750 L water capacity were used where the tanks were grouped randomly. Each tank was stocked with 15 fingerlings of pangas catfish. Three different concentrations (3, 4 and 5% of the total feed) of Zymex, a commercially available multi-enzyme were used for treatment groups along with a control group with no enzyme supplementation. The length-weight relationship of the experimental fish using the initial and final data was established where a significantly positive relationship was found (P