Effects of Bee Pollen on Growth Performance, Intestinal Microbiota and Histomorphometry in African Catfish

SIMPLE SUMMARY: African catfish is one of the most perspective fish species in modern aquaculture. However, the main cost involved in its production is focused chiefly on the cost of feeds. The main reason for this is the behavior of this species (predatory fish) and the high rate of cannibalism in intensive culture. That is why it is essential to assess functional bioactive additives to be used in commercial feed with a positive effect on the growth and survival rates of this commercially valued fish species. In the present study, African catfish juveniles were fed diets enriched with honeybee pollen (BP) and were tested for growth, survival, intestinal microbiota, and tissue histomorphology. It has been shown that BP addition positively affected all the analyzed parameters. This research study spotlights the benefits of BP as a prebiotic supplement for improving the functionality of feeds prepared for African catfish. ABSTRACT: This study aimed to determine the dietary effects of honeybee pollen (BP) on growth parameters, intestinal microbiota, hepatic histoarchitecture, and intestinal histomorphometry of African catfish Clarias gariepinus juveniles. The feeding experiment was carried out in a recirculating aquaculture system under controlled conditions for 21 days to achieve more than a 10-fold increase in weight in fish from the control group. Fish were fed well-balanced commercial feed without any supplements and served as a reference group (group C) and other diets enriched with varying BP levels as 1% (BP1), 2% (BP2), and 3% (BP3). Results showed a significant (p < 0.05) effect of the dietary BP not only on the growth parameters (such as final body weight: 5.0 g to 6.6–7.5 g, weight gain: 0.23 g/d to 0.31–0.35 g/d, body length: 84.7 mm to 93.8–95.9 mm, and specific growth rate: 11.7%/d to 13.1–13.7%/d, group C vs. experimental groups, respectively) but also on the development of beneficially important gut microbiota, such as lactic acid-producing bacteria. In BP-enriched groups, an average of 45% higher body weight gain was observed compared to those reared in the control group. The histological analysis showed that dietary BP may have a positive effect on the development of the intestinal tract and may enhance the absorption of nutrients with the potential ability to maintain a normal hepatic histoarchitecture of the treated African catfish. The results obtained suggest the optimum level of BP additive to feed for African catfish should be 1%.