Cassava leaf protein concentrate in Nile tilapia diets during sex reversal phase

This paper aimed to evaluate the effect of inclusion of cassava leaf protein concentrate (CLPC) in Nile tilapia diets during sex reversal phase. During the experiment, which lasted for 28 days, 300 tilapia larvae at 7 days of age were distributed into 20 aquarium tanks with 30 L of water capacity in a complete randomized design, with 5 levels of cassava leaf protein concentrate (0; 5; 10; 15; and 20%), each one with four replicates. One aquarium with 15 larvae was considered the experimental unit. The five rations were iso-proteic and iso-energetic containing 38.6% of digestible protein and 3,300 kcal of DE/kg diet. The average values of temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen and electric conductivity of the water in the experimental aquarium were 23.90 +/- 1.35 degrees C; 7.23 +/- 0.30; 5.15 +/- 0.84 mg/L; and 105.91 +/- 4.73 mu S/cm, respectively. At the end of the experiment, no significant differences were observed on the weight, final length, weight gain and survival rate of the larvae that were fed cassava leaf protein concentrate. The use of cassava leaf protein concentrate at levels up to 20% in the diets for Nile tilapia in sex reversal phase do not harm the survival neither the performance of the animals.