Detoxified Physic Nut Meal (Jatropha Curcas L.) As Ingredient for Animal Feed

This study aims to evaluate the efficiency of physic nut meal detoxification and the useful of this meal in Wistar rats (Rattus norvegicus) feed. Twenty-four animals, 21-25 days old and initial mean body weight 69.9 g ± 5.40g were used. The animals received three diets: Control (base ration,. ration with 5% of detoxified physic nut meal and ration with 10% of the same meal. A no-protein diet was included aiming to correct the digestibility by protein consumption and wasted. This diet was distributed in six random blocs according to animal's initial live body weight. Total faeces excreted in 24 hours by rats were collected, dried at 60 oC, grounded and weighted to digestibility calculation. After 28 experimental days, the animals were submitted to 12h-fasting and were anesthetized with halothane saturated chamber. Thereafter, the internal organs (liver, heart, and kidney, intestine) were weighted and blood samples were taken. The intestines were dissected and separated small intestine and intestine, which it were used to measurement of intestine length. The detoxified physic nut (DPN) had a negative effect (P>0.05) in animal growth and also in digestibility of diets. The organs weights did not differ between treatments in analysis of variance. However, the regression analysis identified a negative quadratic effect of DPN in liver weight. Moreover, DPN had a positive linear effect in intestine weights. The analysis of variance did not detect any effect of treatments in blood parameters, as well as in hepatic transaminazes enzimes. On the other hand, the regression showed that DPN had a negative quadratic effect in aspartate aminotransferase level. Therefore, the physic nut meal can be considered a promissory protein source. Further studies must be realized to evaluate the physic nut meal in diets of others species, as well as the effect and content of other bioactive molecules. Keywords - Blood parameters, Co-product, Digestibility, Performance, Wistar rats