Impact of partial replacement of fish meal with polychaete meal (Hediste diversicolor) on growth, nutrient digestibility, fatty acid profiles, and fish-in: fish-out ratio in diets of European seabass, Dicenctrarchus labrax

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Akbaş Y., GÜMÜŞ E., Koçer M. A. T., Kurtoğlu A., Aydın İ., Aktaş Ö., ...Daha Fazla

Fish Physiology and Biochemistry, cilt.52, sa.1, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 52 Sayı: 1
  • Basım Tarihi: 2026
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1007/s10695-026-01634-y
  • Dergi Adı: Fish Physiology and Biochemistry
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, BIOSIS, Chemical Abstracts Core, MEDLINE
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: European seabass, Fish in: fish out, Fish meal, Fish oil, Polychaete meal
  • Akdeniz Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

As polychaete meal (PM) from Hediste diversicolor has been reported to be a promising alternative to fish meal (FM) and fish oil (FO) in aquafeeds, we hypothesized that replacing FM with PM would support growth performance, feed utilization, and flesh fatty acid profile of European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax). Therefore, this study was planned to investigate graded PM inclusion levels (0% [control], 5% [PM5], 10% [PM10], 15% [PM15] and 20% [PM20]), selected based on feasible incorporation limits for juvenile European seabass, as a partial substitute for FM (reduced from 29.45% in the control to 14.55 in PM20) in isonitrogenous (48% protein) and isolipidic (14% lipid) diets. A seven-week trial with a total of 150 fish (initial average weight of 14.56 ± 0.01 g) in triplicate tanks assessed growth performance, feed utilization, nutrient digestibility, body composition, fatty acid profiles, and fish-in-fish-out (FIFO) ratio. Growth performance, feed utilization, and organo-somatic indices of experimental fish remained unaffected by dietary PM levels (P > 0.05). A significant linear increase in apparent digestibility coefficients (ADCs) of protein, energy, and organic matter was observed with increasing PM inclusion (P < 0.05), while lipid ADCs remained unaffected P > 0.05). Whole-body protein and lipid content increased, with a corresponding decrease in moisture as dietary PM levels increased (P < 0.05). Fatty acid profiles and lipid quality indices of the liver and fillet were variably affected, liver PUFA levels declined with higher PM, whereas fillet long-chain PUFAs (Lc-PUFAs) such as arachidonic acid (ARA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) linearly increased. The FIFO ratio fell below 1 at a 20% PM inclusion. The findings suggest that PM can replace up to 50% of dietary FM and partly FO in seabass diets without compromising growth, nutrient utilization, or fillet quality while enhancing sustainability metrics.