Effects of ascorbic acid and iron nanoparticles supplements on hyperthermia-induced stress in African catfish, Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822)

Abstract

Thermal stressors in tropical aquaculture are unavoidable and cause many harmful effects. This study assessed the effects of ascorbic acid (AA) and iron nanoparticles supplementation in the diet of African catfish, Clarias gariepinus, and exposed to hyperthermia-induced stress. C. gariepinus juveniles weighing 6.89 ± 0.05 g were randomly distributed into plastic tanks of 48 cm by 30 cm by 31 cm dimension at ten fish per tank in a triplicate treatment. Five isonitrogenous and isocaloric diets containing 35% crude protein were formulated with AA and iron nanoparticles supplementation at (10, 8, 6, 4, 0) g/kg of AA and (0, 4, 6, 8, 0) g/kg of iron nanoparticles in treatment 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, respectively. After 8 weeks of feeding, fish were exposed to hyperthermia-induced stress. Blood was collected from the fish for haematological and biochemical analyses.