Effects of Partial Replacing Fish Meal with Dietary Degossypolled Cottonseed Protein on Growth Performance, Intestinal Barrier, Immune Function and Antioxidant Response in Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides).
- 1School of Life Science, Huzhou Normal University, 759 East 2nd Road, Huzhou 313000, China.
Abstract
The increasing need for aquafeed protein sources calls for sustainable substitutes for fish meal (FM). Degossypolled cottonseed protein (DCP) represents a promising plant-derived protein, but its impact on the intestinal health of carnivorous fish is not well understood. This study assessed how partial replacing FM with DCP affects growth performance, intestinal barrier integrity, immune function, and antioxidant status in juvenile largemouth bass. Five isonitrogenous and isoenergetic diets were prepared, in which DCP replaced 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, or 80% of the FM. Following an 8-week feeding period, the group receiving 20% DCP replacement showed no significant differences in growth or feed efficiency relative to the control, while 80% replacement caused marked growth reduction and increased visceral fat accumulation. High replacement levels (≥60%) downregulated antioxidant-related genes, damaged intestinal villi, compromised barrier integrity (mucins and tight junctions), and activated inflammatory responses via the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway, along with suppression of immune parameters. In conclusion, replacing 20% of FM with DCP was safe for largemouth bass, while excessive substitution (≥60%) induces intestinal oxidative stress, barrier dysfunction, inflammation, and immunosuppression. These findings support DCP as a viable partial substitute for FM in commercial diets for this species.
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BibTeX
@article{li2026effects,
title = {{Effects of Partial Replacing Fish Meal with Dietary Degossypolled Cottonseed Protein on Growth Performance, Intestinal Barrier, Immune Function and Antioxidant Response in Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides).}},
author = {Jie Li and Songting Yang and Xunshang Zhang and Xiaotong Zhu and Hao Zhang and Mingxu Xie and Chenglong Wu},
journal = {Animals : an open access journal from MDPI},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3390/ani16192997},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42882966},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Effects of Partial Replacing Fish Meal with Dietary Degossypolled Cottonseed Protein on Growth Performance, Intestinal Barrier, Immune Function and Antioxidant Response in Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides).
AU - Jie Li
AU - Songting Yang
AU - Xunshang Zhang
AU - Xiaotong Zhu
AU - Hao Zhang
AU - Mingxu Xie
AU - Chenglong Wu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/23
JO - Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
DO - 10.3390/ani16192997
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42882966
AB - The increasing need for aquafeed protein sources calls for sustainable substitutes for fish meal (FM). Degossypolled cottonseed protein (DCP) represents a promising plant-derived protein, but its impact on the intestinal health of carnivorous fish is not well understood. This study assessed how partial replacing FM with DCP affects growth performance, intestinal barrier integrity, immune function, and antioxidant status in juvenile largemouth bass. Five isonitrogenous and isoenergetic diets were prepared, in which DCP replaced 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, or 80% of the FM. Following an 8-week feeding period, the group receiving 20% DCP replacement showed no significant differences in growth or feed efficiency relative to the control, while 80% replacement caused marked growth reduction and increased visceral fat accumulation. High replacement levels (≥60%) downregulated antioxidant-related genes, damaged intestinal villi, compromised barrier integrity (mucins and tight junctions), and activated inflammatory responses via the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway, along with suppression of immune parameters. In conclusion, replacing 20% of FM with DCP was safe for largemouth bass, while excessive substitution (≥60%) induces intestinal oxidative stress, barrier dysfunction, inflammation, and immunosuppression. These findings support DCP as a viable partial substitute for FM in commercial diets for this species.
SN - 2076-2615
ER -