Reza Davoodi

Sixty-day research was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary butyric acid glyceride (BAG) on the performance of Acanthopagrus latus fingerlings (8.59 ± 0.33 g). Experimental feeds were prepared by supplementing a commercial feed (crude protein: 50%, crude lipid: 15%) with graded levels of BAG including 0 (control), 0.25% (BAG0.25), 0.5% (BAG0.5) and 1% (BAG 1). One hundred and twenty fish (10 fish in each tank) were stocked in twelve 300-L tanks then fed with the experimental feeds twice daily. Growth and feed utilization in fish fed BAG-supplemented diets were better than the control (p < 0.05). Fish fed BAG1 diet had more red and white blood cells counts than the other groups. Total immunoglobulin content and lysozyme activity in the skin mucus increased by increasing dietary BAG. Fish in BAG1 group had more skin mucosal alternative complement pathway activity than the other groups (p < 0.05). Liver catalase and glutathione S transferase activities increased in a dose–response manner to dietary BAG level. Fish in BAG1 group showed higher liver glutathione reductase activity than the other treatments. According to the findings of this study, supplementing diet with 1% of BAG can promote growth performance and health conditions in A. latus fingerlings.