The Effect of Dietary Supplements of Black Pepper Piper nigrum and Turmeric Curcuma longa Extracts on Dietary Amino Acid Utilization and Growth Performance in Common Carp

Abstract

AbstractLong‐recognized physiological actions of black pepper Piper nigrum and turmeric Curcuma longa plants or their active ingredients (piperine [Pip] and curcumin [Curc], respectively) have been tested in nutritional and clinical experiments. Available data suggest that both dietary additives influence food acceptance, metabolism, and digestive physiology and increase the bioavailability of several drugs and nutrients. Therefore, the main goal of this study was to test how Common Carp Cyprinus carpio respond to diets supplemented with Pip, Curc, and black pepper extract (BP) in terms of food intake, growth, whole‐body composition, and muscle free amino acid (FAA) levels. We used the following dietary treatments: a reference diet based on casein and gelatin (CG), a diet in which a fraction of CG protein (20%) was replaced with an FAA mixture (Met0.4 [methionine 0.4%]), and three other diets identical to Met0.4 but supplemented with 0.02% Pip, Curc, or BP. We found that addition of spices and their active ingredients impacted fish growth (BP depressed growth by 30%); however, these dietary additives did not show any significant effect on food intake across the treatments. Dietary Pip increased total lipids in the whole body. The total indispensable FAA level was higher in the Curc group compared to the CG group only. The total dispensable FAA level in the BP group was higher than those in the CG and Met0.4 groups but was not different than those in the Pip and Curc groups. We conclude that further study is warranted with different levels of spices in fish diets. A summary of the current state of knowledge on the effect of Pip on nutrient flux and nutrient utilization, as well as possible regulatory mechanism(s) involved in the action of spices in fish, with a focus on Pip, is also provided.