The effects of dietary Vitamin C levels on tissue ascorbic acid concentration and growth in European Sea Bass (Dicentrarchus labrax, L.1758)

Abstract

The effect of different dietary levels of L-ascorbic acid on the growth and vitamin C concentration in the tissue of European Sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax, L.1753) with an initial body weight of 4.6±1.1 g was studied. Four practical diets were formulated to containing 10 (AA10), 25 (AA25), 42 (AA42) and 65 (AA65) mg ascorbic acid equivalent kg-1 diet. The results of a 20 week feeding trial showed that typical vitamin C-deficiency signs and high mortality in the fish fed with the AA10 diet. The fish fed with AA42 (42 mg kg-1 AA diet) showed a significantly higher final body weight than the other diets (P <0.05) and the concentrations of ascorbic acid (AA) in the brain of these fish were higher than in the other experimental group (P < 0.05). In this study, the amount of storage in the organs occurred in this order: Brain, kidney, liver.