Effect of dietary vitamin E level on growth, tissue lipid peroxidation, and erythrocyte fragility of transgenic coho salmon, Oncorhynchus kisutch

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary vitamin E concentration on growth performance, iron-catalyzed lipid peroxidation in liver and muscle tissue, and erythrocyte fragility of transgenic growth hormone coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch). Fish were fed one of four isoenergetic and isonitrogenous experimental diets that contained either 11, 29, 50, or 105 IU of vitamin E/kg. Following the 10-week feeding trial, no significant (P>0.05) diet-related differences were detected in growth, whole body proximate composition or erythrocyte fragility. The vitamin E contents of liver and muscle, however, were affected by the dietary treatment. Fish fed diets containing greater than or equal to50 IU of vitamin E/kg had significantly increased vitamin E concentrations in their tissues. Iron-catalyzed lipid peroxidation of liver and muscle tissue of fish fed elevated dietary vitamin E (greater than or equal to50 IU vitamin E/kg diet) was significantly. lower (P<0.05) than that noted for fish fed the diet containing no supplemental vitamin E. The results indicated that changes in tissue lipid peroxidation measurements precede clinical signs of sub-optimal vitamin E intake. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.