Dietary Effect of Borage (Borago officinalis) Powder on Growth Performance, Immune Response, and Blood Biochemical Parameters in Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio) Juvenile

In this study, the effect of borage (Borago officinalis) powder on juveniles of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) were investigated. The diets contained control (0), 0.5%, 1.5%, and 2.5% of borage powder. The fish with the initial average weight of 8.40 ± 1.37 were allotted to 12 circular tanks of 300 L capacity at a density of ten fish per each tank and fed to apparent satiety three times a day. The growth performance of the fish showed no significant difference compared to the control group (P > 0.05). By adding 1.5% borage powder to the control diet the mucosal immunity of fish in terms of lysozyme activity (14.26%), total protein (69.64%), immunoglobulin (30.78%), and humoral immunity in term of lysozyme activity (9.7%), complement components C3 (8.27%), C4 (21.64%), and total protein (9.33%) were increased significantly (P < 0.05). A total number of red blood cell (12.39%), mean corpuscular volume (MCV, 8.99%), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH, 10.22%), and hemoglobin (2.69%) showed a significant increase in the fish fed supplemented diet with 1.5% borage powder compared to the control (P < 0.05). The results showed supplemented diet with 1.5% dietary borage powder induced high immunity and survival rate of juvenile common carp.