Optimizing rice-fish co-culture: Investigating the impact of rice spacing density on biochemical profiles and production of genetically modified tilapia (Oreochromis spp.) and Cyprinus carpio.

Rice fish co-culture synergistically boosts food production, resulting in numerous advantages across the environmental, social, and financial domains. A study was conducted to investigate the effects of three different rice spacing densities, rice high density (RHD) 9inch×12inch, rice medium density (RMD) 12inch × 12inch, rice low density (RLD) 15inch×12inchon both rice and fish. Various parameters were assessed to evaluate the performance of the co-culture system, including water quality, growth parameters, muscle quality, soil characteristics, rice stem characteristics, and rice yield parameters. When comparing the species, it was observed that GMT (Genetically Male Tilapia) demonstrated superior weight gain (303.13g vs 296.41g) and specific growth rate (1.16 vs 1.15). Regarding the proximate composition, results showed that RMD had the highest crude protein and fat content compared to RLD and RHD. GMT also exhibited greater crude protein and fat content than Cyprinus carpio, with RMD showing the highest values. Treatment groups significantly influenced the amino acid profile of experimental species, with RMD exhibiting the highest values. GMT showed significantly higher levels of essential, non-essential, half-essential, and umami amino acids compared to Cyprinus carpio. The interaction between RMD and GMT further demonstrated significant differences in various amino acid categories with RMD. A non-significant difference was observed among the treatments regarding soil biochemical characteristics. Regarding the rice stem characters, the height of the plant, panicle length, and stem length of rice were found to be comparable in the RMD and RLD groups however, significantly higher in RHD. Regarding rice yield parameters, no significant differences were observed among the other treatment groups, except for yield per hectare (yield/ha), which was significantly higher in the RHD group compared to RMD and RLD. Additionally, 1000-grain weight and panicle number (ears per hill) were significantly higher in the RLD treatment than in the other treatments. In conclusion, our findings indicate that the RMD treatment consistently yielded superior results compared to RLD and RHD. Furthermore, within the rice-fish co-culture system, GMT proved to be a more competent species compared to Cyprinus carpio. The study provides data to understand the interactions between rice spacing density, fish growth and overall productivity can guide the development of sustainable and profitable rice-fish co-culture systems.

Impact of duck stocking density on growth performance, digestive enzymes, blood biochemistry, and antioxidant capacity of the Labeo rohita reared in an integrated ponds system.

This study investigated the effects of duck stocking density (SD) on growth performance, meat quality, hematology, serum metabolites, and antioxidant status of L. rohita reared in an integrated pond system. A total of 9000 fingerlings of L. rohita average weighing 150.5±1 grams were reared in nine ponds (n = 1000/pond) and randomly allotted one of three SDs under a completely randomized design. The stocking densities were 100 (SD-100), 150 (SD-150), and 200 (SD-200) ducks/pond and each group had three replicates. The final body weight, weight gain, and specific growth rates were greater (p<0.05) in SD-200 than in the rest of the treatments. The activities of proteases and amylase were also greater (p<0.05) for SD-200 than for the rest of the SD. However, hematological parameters like red blood cells, white blood cells, hematocrit, met hematocrit, and hemoglobin contents were not influenced (p>0.05) by SD in ponds. The serum total protein, albumin, globulin, creatinine, and glucose contents were also similar (p>0.05) across the ponds. However, blood urea nitrogen was higher (p<0.05) in SD-200 than in the rest of the SD. Moreover, alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, and alkaline phosphatase activities were linearly decreased (p<0.05) with increasing SD across the ponds. The changes in catalases and superoxide dismutase were non-significant (p>0.05) among the groups. However, glutathione peroxidase was greater for SD-200 than for the rest of the SD. The carcass compositional characteristics such as dry matter, protein, fat, and ash contents were not changed (p>0.05) by varying SD. In conclusion, SD over 200 birds/pond improved growth performance, digestive enzyme functions, and oxidative capacity without any negative impact on the hematology and carcass composition of L. rohita.

Parasite Diversity in a Freshwater Ecosystem.

Parasites are a significant component of biodiversity. They negatively affect fish appearance, growth, and reproduction. In this study, the prevalence of infection, diversity, and mean intensity of parasites were examined in 9 freshwater fish species (45 samples per fish species). Ecto-parasites were examined on the skin, gills, and fins with a hand lens. Wet mounts were prepared using mucosal scrapings from all the external and internal organs of the sampled fish. Microscopy, muscle compression, and the pepsin-HCL artificial digestion technique were also performed. In this study, 26 species of parasites were identified including three taxa belonging to 9 species of protozoan parasites, 11 treamtodes, and 6 monogenean parasites. The identified protozoan parasites were Entamoeba histolitica, Chilodonella sp., Coccidia sp., Costia sp., Cryptobia sp., Ichthyopthiris-multifilis, Microsporidia, Piscinoodinium sp., and Ichthyobodo necator. The identified trematode parasites were Fasciola gigantica, Echinostoma revolutum, Fasciola hepatica, Haplorchis pumilio, Brachylaima cribbi, Echinostoma cinetorchis, Neascus sp., Deropegus sp., Trematode Soldier, Centrocestus formosanus, and Clinostomum marginatum. The identified monogenean parasites were Dactylogyrus limipopoensis, Dactylogyrus anchoratus, Dactylogyrus myersi, Dactylogyrus vastator, Gyrodactylus salaris, and Ancyrocephalus. The diversity of parasites was maximum at the Okara site. The host's organs that were targeted for parasitic infection included the intestine, liver, gills, fins, skin, and kidneys. The majority of the parasites were identified in Labeo rohita followed by Hypophthalmichthys molitrix, Ctenopharyngodon idella, Oreochromis niloticus, Cyprinus carpio, and Wallagu attu. Two species appeared to be resistant species because none of the parasites were observed in Notopterus notopterus or Sperata seenghala. This study also concluded that the prevalence of parasites increased with increasing length, size, and age of fish.

Optimization of chitosan for microencapsulation of flaxseed oil through spray drying.

The study is aimed to characterize the wall material chitosan in combination with maltodextrin for microencapsulation of flaxseed oil to enhance the delivery of polyunsaturated fatty acids in functional foods. Four formulations of water-based oil emulsions containing flaxseed oil were prepared, homogenized, and analyzed in terms of stability and viscosity. Resulting emulsions were spray dried and further evaluated physicochemically. Results revealed that total moisture content of spray dried microcapsules was in range of 3.1 ± 0.01-3.32 ± 0.04, while highest microencapsulation efficiency found for spray dried powder was 88.8 ± 1.45. Peroxide and anisidine value revealed high oxidative stability of dried powders during storage at room temperature as compared to bulk FO. Among the four formulations, formulation 3 was found to be highly efficient with high encapsulation efficiency and lower PV (3.93 ± 0.13) and AV (2.93 ± 0.21) value. Fatty acid profile was stable after 30 days and slight change observed in composition. Formulations with different concentration of chitosan has significant (p <0.05) impact on emulsion properties and oxidative stability values. It is concluded that spray dried flaxseed oil microcapsules prepared using chitosan as coating material enhance the stability and delivery of omega-3 fatty acids.