The Use of American Ginseng (Panax quinquefolium) in Practical Diets for Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus): Growth Performance and Challenge withAeromonas hydrophila

Abstract This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of American ginseng (AG), Panax quinquefolium, on growth and resistance to Aeromonas hydrophila in Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus. Ginseng was included in practical test diets at rates of 0.0 (control), 0.50, 1.0, 2.0, or 5.0 g/kg diet. Fish (9.1 ± 0.3 g) were distributed into quadricated 100-L aquaria at a density of 20 fish per aquarium. Fish in all treatments were fed up to satiation twice daily for 8 weeks. After the feeding trial, fish of each treatment were intraperitoneally injected with pathogenic A. hydrophila and kept under observation for 10 days. Highest growth was obtained at 1.0 – 5.0 g AG/kg diet. The survival of fish challenged by A. hydrophila increased with increasing AG levels in fish diets. Cost-benefit analysis indicated that ginseng supplementation could reduce per kg costs by 15% with an optimum inclusion level of 2.0 g/kg. Keywords: Nile tilapiaAmerican ginsenggrowth performance Aeromonas hydrophila infection Acknowledgments The author would like to thank Mohamed N. Monier, Department of Fish Biology and Ecology, Central Laboratory for Aquaculture Research (CLAR), Abbassa, Abo-Hammad, Sharqia, Egypt, for his help during the running of this study, and Prof. Azza M. Abdel-Rahman, Department of Fish Disease, CLAR, Abbassa, Abo-Hammad, Sharqia, Egypt, for her help in the bacterial and NBT assays. The author also would like to thank Dr. Randall E. Brummett, Agriculture & Rural Development Department, World Bank, Washington DC, USA, for editing this article.