Effects of Processed Cassava Root Meal on the Histology of Intestine and Liver of Juvenile Oreochromis niloticus Reared in Cages

Abstract

The study investigated the histology of the intestine and liver of Oreochromis niloticus fed graded levels of
differently processed cassava root meal in cages for 49 days. Five isonitrrogenous (cp 35%) and isocaloric (G
4.44 Kcal/lg) diets were formulated such that oven-dried (60c) and gelatinized fermented cassava root meal
replaced maize at 25% and 50% respectively. The control diet had only maize as energy source. In Oreochromis
niloticus fed oven-dried cassava meals histological changes like erythrocyte infiltration, haemorrhage and
pyknossis in the liver cells and inflammation and sloughing-off of epithelial cells of the intestine increased with
increasing dietary levels. However, Oreochromis niloticus fed diets containing gelatinized cassava meal showed
no signs of histological damage in both intestine and liver tissues. The result implies that gelatinization after
fermentation is an effective means of detoxifying cassava root meal and making it suitable as maize substitute in
diets for Oreochromis niloticus.