Effect of dietary pantothenic acid supplement on growth, body composition and intestinal enzyme activities of juvenile Jian carp (Cyprinus carpio var. Jian)

A 9-week feeding trial was carried out with juvenile Jian carp to study the effect of dietary pantothenic acid (PA) on growth, body composition and intestinal enzyme activities. Semi-purified diets with seven levels (4.0, 15.5, 25.6, 36.1, 45.9, 56.1 and 65.9 mg PA kg(-1)) of supplemental calcium d-pantothenate were fed to Jian carp (13.0 +/- 0.0 g). PA improved specific growth rate (SGR), protein productive value (PPV), protein efficiency ratio (PER) and lipid production value (LPV) (P < 0.05). Fish fed the control diet had significantly lower feed efficiency (FE) than that in any other group (P < 0.05). Body protein content increased with increasing PA levels (P < 0.05), but moisture, lipid and ash of fish carcasses were negatively related to the graded PA levels (P < 0.05). Intestine protein content (IPC), hepatopancreas protein content (HPC) and activity of alpha-amylase, lipase, trypsin, Na+,K+-ATPase, alkaline phosphatase (AKP) and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (gamma-GT) were all positively affected by the dietary PA levels (P < 0.05), while intestine index (ISI) and hepatopancreas index (HSI) decreased with the increment of supplemental levels of PA (P < 0.05). These results suggested that PA could enhance fish growth and intestinal enzyme activities. The dietary PA requirement of juvenile Jian carp, Cyprinus carpio var. Jian (13.0-73.0 g), for optimal growth estimated by the broken-line analysis was 23.0 mg PA kg(-1) diet.