Effects of dietary fish oil substitution with mixed vegetable oils on growth and fillet fatty acid composition of juvenile Caspian great sturgeon (Huso huso)

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of fish oil replacement with dietary vegetable oils on growth performance, chemical composition and fatty acids profiles in fillets of farmed Caspian great sturgeon juveniles Huso huso (26.97 ± 0.49 g). Five isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets were formulated, containing 10 % of added oil. The diet with 100 % kilka fish oil (Caspian tyulka, Clupeonella caspia) was the control. Fish oil was substituted by 50 % of vegetable oils consisting of an equal share of sunflower and soybean oils (diet A), sunflower and canola oils (diet B) and soybean and canola oils (diet C). In diet D, 100 % of fish oil was replaced with vegetable oil (1:1:1 ratio of sunflower oil, soybean oil and canola oil). Significant differences (P > 0.05) were not detected during 60 days feeding trial in final body weight, weight gain, condition factor, specific growth rate, feed conversion rate, protein efficiency ratio and the chemical composition of fillet (crude protein, crude lipid, moisture and ash). Generally, the fatty acids composition of fish fillets was reflective of the dietary lipid sources. These results indicate the feasibility of substituting fish oils with the mixture of vegetable oils in diets of juvenile H. huso without negative influence on growth providing optimum ratios of n-3/n-6 and n-3/18:1n-9 is met in the diet.