Quercetin Application for Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio): I. Effects on Growth Performance, Humoral Immunity, Antioxidant Status, Immune-Related Genes, and Resistance against Heat Stress

Kobra Armobin; Ehsan Ahmadifar; Hossein Adineh; Mahsa Naderi Samani; Naser Kalhor; Sevdan Yilmaz; Seyed Hossein Hoseinifar; Hien Van Doan

doi:10.1155/2023/1168262

Quercetin Application for Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio): I. Effects on Growth Performance, Humoral Immunity, Antioxidant Status, Immune-Related Genes, and Resistance against Heat Stress

Aquac Nutr. 2023 Feb 17:2023:1168262. doi: 10.1155/2023/1168262. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Kobra Armobin¹, Ehsan Ahmadifar¹, Hossein Adineh², Mahsa Naderi Samani³, Naser Kalhor⁴, Sevdan Yilmaz⁵, Seyed Hossein Hoseinifar⁶, Hien Van Doan⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Zabol, Zabol, Iran.
² Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Gonbad Kavous University, Gonbad Kavous, Golestan, Iran.
³ Iran Fisheries Organization, Tehran, Iran.
⁴ Department of Mesenchymal Stem Cell, Academic Center for Education, Culture and Research, Qom Branch, Qom, Iran.
⁵ Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Marine Science and Technology, 17100 Çanakkale, Turkey.
⁶ Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Fisheries and Environmental Sciences, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran.
⁷ Department of Animal and Aquatic Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.

Abstract

This study was done to evaluate the effect of different quercetin levels on growth performance, immune responses, antioxidant status, serum biochemical factors, and high-temperature stress responses in common carp (Cyprinus carpio). A total number of 216 common carp with an average weight of 27.21 ± 53 g were divided into 12 tanks (four treatments × three replications) and fed 0 mg/kg quercetin (T0), 200 mg/kg quercetin (T1), 400 mg/kg quercetin (T2), and 600 mg/kg quercetin (T3) for 60 days. There were significant differences in growth performance, and the highest final body weight (FBW), weight gain (WG), specific growth rate (SGR), and feed intake (FI) were observed in T2 and T3 (P < 0.05). Different quercetin levels significantly increased complement pathway activity (ACH50) and lysozyme activity both before and after heat stress (P < 0.05). Catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and malondialdehyde (MDA) were significantly increased in fish exposed to heat stress, but fish fed with a supplemented diet with quercetin showed the lowest levels both before and after heat stress (P < 0.05). Superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels were significantly enhanced in fish fed diets supplemented with quercetin in both phases (P < 0.05). Different quercetin levels led to a significant decrease in alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) before and after the challenging test (P < 0.05). Glucose and cortisol levels were significantly higher in the control group compared to the other treatments in both phases (P < 0.05). The expression of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and lysozyme was markedly upregulated in fish fed with quercetin-supplemented diets (P < 0.05). No marked effects were observed for growth hormone (GR) and interleukin-8 (IL8) (P > 0.05). In conclusion, dietary quercetin supplementations (400-600 mg/kg quercetin) improved growth performance, immunity, and antioxidant status and increased tolerance to heat stress.