Effects of Taurine Supplementation on the Growth Performance of Juvenile Rock Bream Oplegnathus fasciatus

An 8-week feeding trial was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary taurine supplementation on the growth performance of juvenile rock bream, Oplegnathus fasciatus. Triplicate groups of 25 fish averaging 2.72 ± 0.04 g (mean ± SD) were fed one of six experimental diets prepared by adding taurine at 0%, 0.25%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5% and 3.0% (Control, Tau0.25, Tau0.5, Tau1.0, Tau1.5 and Tau3.0, respectively). At the end of the feeding trial, the weight gain, specific growth rate and protein efficiency ratio of fish fed the Tau 0.5, Tau1.0 and Tau1.5 diets were significantly higher ( P < 0.05) than those of fish fed the Control and Tau 0.25 diets. The feed efficiency of fish fed the Tau 0.5 diet was significantly higher than that of fish fed the Control, Tau 0.25 and Tau3.0 diets. Fish fed the Tau1.0 diet had higher whole-body crude protein content than fish fed the Control diet, while the crude lipid content of fish fed the Tau 1.5 and Tau3.0 diets was significantly lower than that of fish fed the Control and Tau 0.25 diets. An ANOVA suggested that the optimum level of dietary taurine supplementation to improve growth and reduce the body lipid contents of juvenile rock bream, O. fasciatus, was 0.5%, while a broken line analysis of weight gain indicated a level of 0.62%.