DIRECT AND RESIDUAL EFFECT OF AZANZA GARCKEANA (GORON TULA) FRUIT MEAL ON LIPID PROFILES OF NEW ZEALAND WHITE RABBITS IN THE HUMID TROPICS

Abstract

This study was conducted to examine the direct and residual effects of Azanza garckeana fruit on the serum lipid profile of New Zealand white rabbit bucks. Sixty (60) New Zealand white rabbit bucks, aged 2-3 months were randomly divided into 4 treatment groups (T1, T2, T3 and T4) of 15 bucks, with 3 replicates of 5 rabbits per replicate in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) Experiment. The experimental diets were formulated to meet the nutrient requirement of rabbit bucks and supplemented with Azanza garckeana fruit meal at 0, 100, 200 and 300g/kg respectively, representing T1, T2, T3 and T4. The study was conducted in two experimental phases of 8 weeks each, which were- the direct and the residual phases. At the end of each experimental phase, blood samples were collected, the sera extracted and analyzed for the various lipid profile parameters. The data collected were subjected to Analysis of Variance (SPSS 23). Results showed that the different supplementations of Azanza garckeana fruit meal up to 300g/kg in the diets significantly reduced the serum total cholesterol, triglycerol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol and very low density lipoprotein cholesterol at the direct and residual phase. It was concluded that Azanza garckeana fruit meal at 100g/kg, 200g/kg and
300g/kg significantly reduced the serum total cholesterol, triglycerol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol and very low density lipoprotein cholesterol at the direct and residual phase without detrimentally affecting the physiology of the New Zealand White rabbit bucks in the humid tropics.