Assessment of dietary chaste tree (Vitex agnus-castus) fruit extract on growth performance, hemato-biochemical parameters, and mRNA levels of growth and appetite-related genes in goldfish (Carassius auratus)

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In this study, the effect of oral administration of chaste tree fruit (CTF) extract was evaluated on growth performance, hematological indices, serum biochemical parameters, and the expression of growth and appetite-related genes in goldfish (Carassius auratus). The fry (N = 300; 2.40 ± 0.12 g) were randomly dispersed into 12 aquaria and fed with different levels of CTF extract (0 (control), 0.5%, 1.0%, and 1.5%) for 56 days. At the end of the trial, the highest body weight gain and the lowest feed conversion ratio were observed in the fish fed with 1.5% CTF extract (P < 0.05). The group fed with CTF extract at 1.5% showed the highest levels of red blood cell, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and serum albumin (P < 0.05), while no significant changes were observed for mean corpuscular volume, mean hemoglobin, and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration among all groups (P > 0.05). The levels of aspartate transaminase and lactate dehydrogenase were decreased by increasing the supplementation levels of CTF extract and the lowest values were obtained in 1.5% CTF extract diet (P < 0.05). The expression of growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor 1, and ghrelin genes was significantly up-regulated in the fish fed with 1.5% CTF extract compared to other treatments (P < 0.05). Overall, the enrichment of goldfish diet with 1.5% CTF extract could interfere positively in the growth-related traits and hematological parameters.