ReseaRch PaPeR Journal of Agricultural and Marine Sciences 2022, 27(2): 41–49 DOI: 10.53541/jams.vol27iss2pp41-49 Received 5 December 2021 Accepted 25 April 2022 Cooked sesame meal in the diet of African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822): Effects on haematology, liver and kidney histology W. A. Jimoh1,*, O. A. Fagbenro2 and E. O. Adeparusi2 W. A. Jimoh1,*( ) jimoh.wa@unilorin.edu.ng, 1Department of Aqua- culture and Fisheries Technology, University of Ilorin, PMB 1515, Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria, 2Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture Technology, Federal University of Technology, PMB 704 Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria. Introduction Plant and animal products, especially by-prod-ucts of processing plants, make up the majority of traditional fish feed ingredients. These items are also consumed by humans (Socas-Rodríguez et al., 2021). Soybean meal, which is the best plant protein feedstuff used in fish feeds, could potentially replace a large portion of fish meal (Hodar et al., 2020). How- ever, ever-increasing demand for human consumption and other animal feed industries make it difficult to use soybean protein sources for fish feed sustainably (Jimoh et al., 2020c ; Siddhuraju & Becker, 2001 ; Arru et al., 2019). This has lowered the viability of the fish farming industry in many developing countries, necessitating the quest for alternative protein sources for the develop- ment of low-cost feeds that can substitute these conven- وجبة السمسم املطبوخة يف النظام الغذائي لسمك السلور األفريقي: )Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822 التأثريات على أمراض الدم والكبد وأنسجة الكلى جيموه1،*، فاجبينرو2، أديباروسي2 Abstract. Haematological and histological alterations are strong pointers to the health status of farmed fish, farm animals and even humans. These provide dependable information on metabolic disorders and deficiency. The haema- tological and histological changes in African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822) fingerlings fed cooked sesame (Sesamum indicum) seed meal was examined in a 56-day feeding trial. Three batches of sesame seeds were cooked for 10, 20 or 30 min, dried, milled, and mechanically defatted using a screw press. Cooked seed meals (CSM) were sub- stituted for defatted soybean meal in the diets of African catfish at 15, 30, and 45 per cent. The highest haemoglobin content (Hb) was found in catfish fed the control diet (CTR), while the lowest Hb levels were found in catfish fed the CSM345 diet. The haemoglobin content of catfish fed different dietary treatments varied significantly (P<0.05). Hb values of catfish fed CTR diet and test diets CSM115, CSM215, CSM315, and CSM130 were not significantly different (P>0.05). Other haematological parameters of the fish fed various dietary treatments showed a similar trend as RBC. Dietary replacement of soybean meal by differently cooked sesame seed meal in Clarias gariepinus diet did not affect haematology of the fish at lower inclusion levels for the different cooking times employed in the study (15% and 30% inclusion level for 10 min cooked sesame-based diets; 15% inclusion level for 20 and 30 min cooked sesame-based di- ets). Although, there was marked vacuolation of hepatocytes in catfish subjected to various dietary treatments, however these did not relate to dose-dependent dietary treatments. Keywords: Haematology, Histology, Sesame, Packed Cell volume, Clarias gariepinus. هــذه توفــر البشــر. وحــى املزرعــة وحيــواانت املســتزرعة لألمســاك الصحيــة احلالــة علــى القويــة املؤشــرات مــن والنســيجية الدمويــة التغــرات تعــد املســتخلص: املؤشــرات معلومــات ميكــن االعتمــاد عليهــا حــول اضطــراابت التمثيــل الغذائــي ونقــص. مت فحــص التغــرات الدمويــة والنســيجية يف إصبعيــات الســلور األفريقــي Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822)2 الــي تتغــذى علــى وجبــة بــذور السمســم املطبــوخ )Sesamum indicum( يف جتربــة تغذيــة مدهتــا 56 يوًمــا. حيــث مت طهــي ثــاث دفعــات مــن بــذور السمســم ملــدة 10 أو 20 أو 30 دقيقــة ، وجتفيفهــا وطحنهــا وإزالــة الدهــن ميكانيكيًــا ابســتخدام مكبــس لولــي. مت اســتبدال وجبــات البــذور املطبوخــة )CSM( بدقيــق فــول الصــواي منــزوع الدهــن يف وجبــات مســك الســلور األفريقــي بنســبة 15 و 30 و 45 يف املائــة. مت العثــور علــى أعلــى حمتــوى مــن اهليموجلوبــن )Hb( يف مســك الســلور الــذي مت تغذيتــه علــى النظــام الغذائــي )CTR( ، بينمــا مت العثــور علــى أدىن مســتوايت اهليموجلوبــن يف مســك الســلور الــذي مت تغذيتــه علــى النظــام الغذائــي .CSM345 أظهــرت النتائــج عــن وجــود اختــاف واضــح و متبايــن)P >0.05( يف حمتــوى CTR اهليموجلوبــن يف مســك الســلور الــذي مت تغذيتــه علــى معاجلــات غذائيــة خمتلفــة. و علــى النظــر مل تكــن قيــم اهليموغلوبــن يف األمســاك الــي تغــذت علــى نظــام والوجبــات الغذائيــة االختباريــة CSM115 و CSM215 و CSM315 و CSM130 خمتلفــة بشــكل كبــر )P< 0.05( . أظهــرت معامــات الــدم األخــرى لألمســاك الــي تتغــذى علــى معاجلــات غذائيــة خمتلفــة اجتاًهــا مشــاهبًا لكــرات الــدم احلمــراء. مل يؤثــر االســتبدال الغذائــي لوجبــة فــول الصــواي عــن طريــق وجبــة بــذور مسســم مطبوخــة بشــكل خمتلــف يف نظــام Clarias gariepinus الغذائــي علــى الــدم يف األمســاك عنــد مســتوى اســتبدال أقــل )أي وقــت طهــي خمتلــف مســتخدم يف الدراســة ؛ 15٪ و 30٪ مســتوى اســتبدال ملــدة 10 دقائــق مطبــوخ علــى أســاس التغذيــة املعتمــدة علــى السمســم؛ 15٪ مســتوى اســتبدال ملــدة 20 و 30 دقيقــة يف تغذيــة السمســم املطبوخــة(. علــى الرغــم مــن وجــود فجــوة ملحوظــة يف خــااي الكبــد يف مســك الســلور اخلاضــع للعاجــات الغذائيــة املختلفــة ، إال أن هــذه مل تكــن هلــا عاقــة ابلعاجــات الغذائيــة املعتمــدة علــى اجلرعــة. Clarias gariepinus ، الكلمات املفتاحية: أمراض الدم ، علم األنسجة ، السمسم ، حجم اخلااي املعبأة 42 SQU Journal of Agricultural and Marine Sciences, 2022, Volume 27, Issue 2 Cooked sesame meal in the diet of African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822): Effects on haematology, liver and kidney histology tional feedstuffs. In addition, the high phytate content of soybean meal demands supplementing with inorganic phosphorus sources in monogastric animals. Excessive dietary phosphorus is excreted into the environment, where it forms pollution (Hussain et al., 2021). Phytate has an adverse effect on fish development and body composition. In fish, phytate forms a phytate-phospho- rus combination with phosphorus, leaving it unavailable to the fish. In addition, phytate forms complexes with cations such as calcium, iron, copper, magnesium, and others, lowering mineral bioavailability. Phytate binds to trypsin and prevents the protein from being digest- ed (Kumar et al., 2012). Furthermore, soybeans are de- ficient in sulphur-containing amino acids, particularly methionine and lysine (Jannathulla et al., 2019). Other legumes are less costly protein sources that have the po- tential to reduce the cost of fish feed when used as sup- plementary ingredients to fulfil the nutritional needs of fish (Dorothy et al., 2018 ; Pelletier et al., 2018). Thus, the quest for less expensive and more reliable protein sources becomes a priority. The majority of the studies focused on underutilized plant proteins in fish diets. The reported studies on the use of other oilseed residues in warm water fish feeding, such as sesame meal, is mini- mal (Davies et al., 2000 ; Jimoh, 2020a ; Jimoh, 2020b). Sesame seed (Sesamum indicum) is one of the world’s most valuable annual oil crops. They contained nutrients that are comparable to soybean meal and other conven- tional legumes quantitatively and qualitatively (Hossain and Jauncey, 1990 ; Jimoh et al., 2011 ; Vera et al., 2020). Their dietary protein sources in the fish diet is well estab- lished for Clarias gariepinus (Jimoh & Aroyehun, 2011 ; Fagbenro et al., 2010 ; Jimoh, 2021) and common carp (Hossain & Jauncey, 1989a ; Hossain & Jauncey, 1989b ; Hossain & Jauncey, 1990). The protein-rich meal left- over from oil extraction can be used as feed ingredients in aquafeed manufacture (Jimoh, 2021). Furthermore, sesame seed cake is considered to be high in methionine and tryptophan (Saleh, 2020; Jimoh et al., 2014); amino acids that are missing in most plant protein feedstuffs. It’s use in fish diets has received little attention. Sesame is palatable and has a high digestibility coefficient and its apparent nutrient digestibility coefficients in Clarias gariepinus fed various timed wet-heat-treated sesame seedmeal based were comparable to those reported for fish fed with control diets (Jimoh, 2021; Jimoh et al., 2014). Since they provide dependable information on metabolic disorders and deficiency, haematological and histological alterations are strong pointers (Bahmani et al., 2001; Ferreira et al., 2007). In the light of this consid- eration, an attempt was made to investigate the effect of feeding diets containing cooked sesame (Sesamum in- dicum) seed meal and their effects on the haematology and histology of the liver and kidney of African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822) fingerlings. Materials and Methods Sesame seeds were collected from a farm in Kebbi, Nige- ria and other feedstuffs were purchased from commer- cial sources in Nigeria. They were milled separately, and screened to fine particle size (250 µm). Three batches of sesame seeds were dried, milled in a hammer mill, and mechanically defatted using a locally made screw press. After that, the triplicate samples of the cake’s proxi- mate composition were determined (AOAC, 2010). The gross energy content of the samples was determined us- ing the physiological values of 5.61 kcal/g protein, 9.50 kcal/g lipid, and 4.11 kcal/g carbohydrate (Tacon, 1999). Based on the composition of protein in the feedstuff, a control diet and nine test diets (40 per cent crude pro- tein, 12 per cent crude lipid, and 18.45 MJ/kg gross ener- gy) were made (Table 1). Soybean meal, which produced 50% of total protein, was included in the control diet (CTR). Each of these differently processed seed meals was used in nine test diets at three different levels of soy- bean meal replacement: 15, 30, and 45 per cent (Table 2). The feedstuffs were ground, and hot water was add- ed to assist binding before being fed into a Hobart-200T pelleting and mixing machine. It was then created to a homogeneous mass, which was then minced into 0.8 mm (long) 2 mm (diameter) pellets and immediately sun-dried (30-32oC). After drying, the diets were kept frozen in a refrigerator (-4oC) and samples were taken for proximate and amino acid analysis. Three replicated samples were considered. Before the feeding trial, Clarias gariepinus fingerlings were acclimated to experimental conditions for 7 days. Aquaria with 60 litre size rectangular plastic tanks were stocked with 15 catfish fingerlings (3.38±0.015g). For 56 days, each diet was fed to the catfish in triplicate tanks twice a day (at 9.00 am, 4:00 pm) at 5% body weight. The total fish weight in each tank was calculated every two weeks, and the amount of diet was changed to match the new weight. Haematological Examination of the Fish After euthanization in 100 ml/l clove oil, fish (n=6) from each replicate were removed for blood analysis. A 2 ml disposable heparinised syringe treated with ethylenedi- aminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) as an anticoagulant was used to extract 3 ml blood per treatment from a car- diac puncture on the fish. The blood analysis was per- formed according to the procedure of Jimoh (2020b). Histological Examination of Catfish Three fish per treatment were sampled for histological examination at the end of the experiment. The test or- ganisms were euthanized in 100 ml/l clove oil and then dissected kidney and liver were taken out. The organs were fixed in 10% formalin for three days, and then the tissue was dehydrated for three days in graded levels of 50%, 70%, 90%, and 100% alcohol to enable paraffin 43Research Paper Jimoh, Fagbenro, Adeparusi wax to penetrate into the tissue. Melted wax was used to embed the organs. Using a rotatory microtome, the tissue was sectioned into thin parts (5-7 µm) and stained for ten min with Harris hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) stain according to the procedures of Jimoh (2020a). Each sec- tion was cleared by immersing it in warm water (38°C), and placed it on a clean slide, and heating it at 58°C for 30 min to melt the wax. Sections of the stained slide were analyzed under a light microscope at 400x magni- fication. The sections were interpreted at the University of Ibadan, Department of Veterinary Anatomy, Nigeria. Ethics approval The care and use of laboratory animals were done fol- lowing standard procedure for animal welfare during transportation, housing and termination. Animal Re- search: Reporting of In-vivo Experiments (ARRIVE) guidelines were followed (Kilkenny et al., 2010). Statistical Analysis Using SPSS 17.0, all data were expressed as mean ± stan- dard deviation and subjected to a one-way analysis of Table 1. Proximate Composition (g/100 g Dry Matter) and Essential Amino Acid Profile of feedstuff (g/100 g protein). Proximate Composition CSMS10 CSMS20 CSMS30 Fishmeal Soybean Meal Corn Meal Moisture Crude protein Crude lipid Crude fibre Ash NFE 9.1 40.39 11.90 5.38 11.28 22.02 8.97 38.36 12.83 6.22 10.38 22.02 9.28 35.83 12.58 5.41 12.28 24.62 7.59 69.76 8.82 - 13.83 - 8.92 42.81 18.56 5.63 6.01 18.07 9.21 8.89 1.49 29.78 3.81 46.82 Amino Acid Profile * * * Lysine Histidine Arginine Threonine Cystine Valine Methionine Isoleucine Leucine Tyrosine Phenyalanine 3.66 2.72 11.68 2.98 1.95 4.80 3.42 2.32 3.62 2.33 3.68 3.22 2.88 11.72 3.21 2.02 4.92 3.47 3.76 8.12 2.96 3.34 3.04 3.06 12.01 3.10 1.82 5.08 3.71 3.91 5.22 2.18 4.81 4.96 1.47 4.41 2.82 0.82 3.31 1.84 2.98 4.78 2.0 2.50 3.10 1.26 3.41 1.92 0.63 2.53 0.72 2.92 4.02 1.72 2.45 0.28 0.29 0.48 0.4 0.25 0.5 0.19 0.39 1.37 0.43 0.54 *Values obtained from NRC (1993) what is NRC? CSM 10: Sesame seeds cooked for 10 minutes CSM 20: Sesame seeds cooked for 20 minutes CSM 30: Sesame seeds cooked for 30 minutes Table 2. GROSS COMPOSITION (g/100 g DRY MATTER), OF EXPERIMENTAL DIETS AT VARYING REPLACEMENT LEVELS OF DIFFERENTLY COOKED SESAME SEED MEALS CTR CSM 115 CSM 130 CSM 145 CSM 215 CSM 230 CSM 245 CSM 315 CSM 330 CSM 345 Fishmeal Soybean Meal Cooked Sesame Corn Meal Fish Oil *Vit/Min Premix Starch 27.24 46.71 - 11.25 5.09 5.00 4.71 27.24 39.71 7.42 11.25 5.09 5.00 4.29 27.24 32.70 14.86 11.25 5.09 5.00 3.86 27.24 25.70 22.80 11.25 5.09 5.00 2.92 27.24 39.71 7.86 11.25 5.09 5.00 3.85 27.24 32.70 15.72 11.25 5.09 5.00 3.00 27.24 25.70 23.58 11.25 5.09 5.00 2.14 27.24 39.71 8.37 11.25 5.09 5.00 3.34 27.24 32.70 16.75 11.25 5.09 5.00 1.97 27.24 25.70 25.12 11.25 5.09 5.00 0.60 * Specification: each kg contains: Vitamin A , 4,000,000IU; Vitamin B, 800,000IU; Vitamin E, 16,000mg, Vitamin K3,800mg; Vitamin B1, 600mg; Vitamin B2, 2,000mg; Vitamin B6, 1,600mg, Vitamin B12,8mg; Niacin,16,000mg; Ca- plan, 4,000mg; Folic Acid, 400mg; Biotin, 40mg; Antioxidant 40,000mg; Chlorine chloride, 120,000mg; Manganese, 32,000mg; Iron 16,000mg; Zinc, 24,000mg; Copper 32,000mg; Iodine 320mg; Cobalt,120mg; Selenium, 800mg manufac- tured by DSM Nutritional products Europe Limited, Basle, Switzerland. 44 SQU Journal of Agricultural and Marine Sciences, 2022, Volume 27, Issue 2 Cooked sesame meal in the diet of African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822): Effects on haematology, liver and kidney histology variance (ANOVA) test. When ANOVA showed a sig- nificant difference (P<0.05) and Duncan’s multiple range test was used to determine the significant differences between treatments (P<0.05). Results The proximate composition and amino acids of experi- mental diets are shown in the Tables 3 and 4. There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the crude protein, crude lipid, and energy contents of the experimental di- ets, indicating that they were isonitrogenous, isolipidic, and isocaloric. C.gariepinus’ dietary requirements for protein, energy, and lipids. Throughout the feeding trial, the fish in each dietary treatment successfully fed on the experimental diets. Haematological Examination Table 5 indicates the haematological parameters of C. gariepinus fed cooked sesame meal-based diets. The fish fed CTR had the highest primary haematological value (Hb, PCV, and RBC), which was significantly different (P<0.05) from the fish fed the other dietary treatments except for the test diets CSM115, CSM215, CSM315, and CSM130. Between the control and fish-fed test diets, there was no significant difference in white blood cell count or MCHC (P>0.05). The ESR of fish fed with the control diet and those fed with the test diets CSF115, CSF130, CSF215, and CSF315 did not vary significantly (P>0.05). Discussion The reduction in haematological parameters observed in C. gariepinus fed cooked sesame diets might be connected to the decrease in the nutritional quality of the seedmeal as as the cooking time increased (Table 1). This agrees with the report of Jimoh et al. (2020b). The nutritionally deficient diets can cause haemoglobin concentration, haematocrit, and red blood cell count to decrease. Physiologically, haemoglobin is essential for fish survival since it is directly linked to blood’s oxy- gen binding ability. Given that the values are within the usual range reported for African catfish. The reduction observed in this study may not have harmed C. gariepi- nus. Furthermore, the Hb, PCV, RBC, and WBC values recorded in this study were all within the normal range Table 3. PROXIMATE COMPOSITION (%) AND GROSS ENERGY (kcal/100 g) OF EXPERIMENTAL DIETS AT VARYING REPLACEMENT LEVELS OF DIFFERENTLY COOKED SESAME SEED MEALS. CTR CSM 115 CSM 130 CSM 145 CSM 215 CSM 230 CSM 245 CSM 315 CSM 330 CSM 345 Moisture Protein Lipid Fibre Ash NFE Energy (kcal/100g) 9.43±0.35 40.53±.22 12.30±0.25 5.25±0.29 6.56±0.38 25.93±0.57 450±5 9.55±0.18 40.61±0.29 12.25±0.10 5.48±0.16 6.63±0.47 25.47±0.92 448±2 9.72±0.40 40.50±0.29 12.21±0.13 5.36±0.17 6.50±0.19 25.71±0.77 448±1 9.79±0.06 40.41±0.34 12.39±0.22 5.38±0.05 6.36±0.20 25.67±0.50 449±1 9.36±0.21 40.69±0.27 12.29±0.28 5.36±0.14 6.53±0.34 25.77±0.33 450±3 9.65±0.33 40.60±0.41 12.39±0.38 5.34±0.35 6.38±0.18 25.64±1.19 450±1 9.57±0.16 40.48±0.27 12.41±0.18 5.39±0.23 6.44±0.23 25.71±0.32 450±2 9.46±0.25 40.29±0.34 12.40±0.15 5.30±0.36 6.76±0.07 25.78±0.29 449±3 9.57±0.31 40.33±0.45 12.52±0.13 5.63±0.11 6.46±0.24 25.48±0.46 449±1 9.33±0.15 40.05±0.80 12.20±0.11 5.36±0.41 6.74±0.14 26.31±1.05 448±2 NFE: Nitrogen Free Extracts Table 4. AMINO ACID PROFILE (g/100g Protein) OF EXPERIMENTAL DIETS AT VARYING REPLACEMENT LEVELS OF DIFFERENTLY COOKED SESAME SEED MEALS. CTR CSM 115 CSM 130 CSM 145 CSM 215 CSM 230 CSM 245 CSM 315 CSM 330 CSM 345 Lysine Histidine Arginine Threonine Cystine Valine Methionine/TSA Isoleucine Leucine Tyrosine Phenyalanine/TAA 3.15 1.02 2.85 1.71 0.55 2.14 0.86 2.22 3.33 1.40 1.89 2.89 1.08 3.28 1.80 0.65 2.32 1.06 2.19 3.32 1.45 1.99 2.94 1.14 3.70 1.88 0.75 2.50 1.27 2.16 3.31 1.50 2.10 3.01 1.21 4.18 1.99 0.86 2.70 1.49 2.14 3.31 1.57 2.21 2.87 1.21 3.31 1.83 0.66 2.35 1.08 2.31 3.69 1.51 1.98 2.90 1.40 3.78 1.95 0.78 2.56 1.30 2.40 4.05 1.62 2.07 2.94 1.60 4.24 2.06 0.89 2.77 1.53 2.49 4.40 1.73 2.16 2.87 1.18 3.37 1.84 0.65 2.39 1.11 2.34 3.49 1.50 2.12 2.91 1.33 3.89 1.96 0.76 2.64 1.38 2.47 3.65 1.52 2.35 2.91 1.49 4.40 2.09 0.87 2.88 1.64 2.59 3.80 1.58 2.58 4.8 1.2 3.6 2.8 2.4 2.4 2.0 3.5 4.0 TAA: Total Aromatic Amino acid TSA: Total Sulphur-containing Amino Acids 45Research Paper Jimoh, Fagbenro, Adeparusi Table 5. HAEMATOLOGICAL PROFILE OF BLOOD OF Clarias gariepinus FED COOKED SESAME MEAL BASED DIETS EXPERIMEN- TAL DIETS. CTR CSM 115 CSM 130 CSM 145 CSM 215 CSM 230 CSM 245 CSM 315 CSM 330 CSM 345 Hb PCV WBC RBC MCHC MCV MCH ESR 10.11±0.10a 30.55±0.17a 6600±141.42 3.30±0.04a 33.09±0.14 92.72±.48f 30.68±0.03d 3.52±0.04a 10.03±0.08a 30.14±0.26ab 6450±212.13 3.18±0.04ab 33.27±0.02 94.92±0.23e 61.58±0.11bc 3.48±0.03a 9.75±0.25ab 29.28±0.75ab 6375±106.07 3.04±0.08bc 33.30±0.01 96.48±0.01bc 32.13±0.02abc 3.39±0.09ab 8.84±0.13c 26.57±0.35c 6300±141.42 2.74±0.04d 33.27±0.05 97.13±0.01b 32.33±0.05a 3.07±0.04c 10.01±0.06a 30.05±0.18ab 6450±70.71 3.18±0.02ab 33.29±0.01 94.64±0.05e 31.51±0.01bc 3.47±0.02a 9.55±0.17b 28.73±0.57b 6350±141.42 2.98±0.06c 33.25±0.06 96.58±0.16bc 32.10±0.11abc 3.32±0.06b 8.71±0.03c 26.51±0.26c 6250±141.42 2.70±0.01d 32.86±0.22 98.17±0.46a 32.25±0.06ab 3.02±0.01c 10.00±0.04a 30.05±0.16ab 6400±141.42 3.15±0.01ab 33.27±0.06 95.38±0.09de 31.73±0.03abc 3.47±0.01a 9.55±0.11b 28.75±0.31b 6337±194.45 2.99±0.06c 33.22±0.04 96.16±0.78cd 31.94±0.23abc 3.32±0.04b 8.55±0.31c 26.06±1.47c 6330±141.42 2.69±0.17d 32.83±0.66 96.90±0.64bc 31.81±0.85abc 2.97±0.11c Row means with different superscripts are significantly different (p<0.05) Hb: Haemoglobin content (gm/100 ml) PCV: Packed Cell Volume ( % ) WBC: White Blood Cell Count (104mm3) RBC: Red Blood Cell Count (106 mm3 ) MCHC: Mean Corpuscular Haemoglobin Concentration ( % ) MCV: Mean Corpuscular Volume (µ3) MCH: Mean Corpuscular Haemoglobin (ρg) ESR: Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (mm/h) Figure 1. Photomicrographs (H&E stained, 5µm section, x400 magnification) of the liver of Clarias gariepinus fed. (a) CTR: There was diffuse vacuolation of the hepatocytes; (b) CSM115: There was very mild, diffuse vacuolation of the hepatocytes; (c) CSM145: There was very mild, diffuse vacuolation of the hepatocytes; (d) CSM215: There very moderate diffuse vacuolation of the hepatocytes; (e) CSM230: There was diffuse vacuolar degeneration of the hepatocytes; (f) no visible lesion was seen in the livers of fish fed CSM130, CSM245, CSM315 and CSM330 (g) CSM345: There was mild central venous and portal congestion 46 SQU Journal of Agricultural and Marine Sciences, 2022, Volume 27, Issue 2 Cooked sesame meal in the diet of African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822): Effects on haematology, liver and kidney histology of a healthy fish (Jimoh et al., 2020c; Myburgh et al., 2008). The RBC values found in this study were simi- lar to those found in Clarias lazera (Zaki et al., 2011), Clarias gariepinus (Omitoyin, 2006), Heteropneustes fossilis (Khan and Abidi, 2010; Khan and Abidi, 2011). Usually, an erythrocyte count of more than 1×106/mm3 is considered high and this indicates that the blood has a high oxygen-carrying capacity. This is typical capability of aerial respiration and high activity (Fagbenro et al., 2013). Haniffa and Mydeen (2011) found a value of Hb for Channa striatus was higher than the value found in this study. The Hb values for hybrid catfish fed a con- trol diet reported by Osuigwe et al. (2002) for hybrid catfish (Heterobranchus longifilis x C. gariepinus) were similar to those found in this study. The haematocrit values for fish were also within the usual range of 20- 38 per cent (Erondu et al., 1993; Adeyemo et al., 2014). Increased production of leucocytes in the haemato- poietic tissue of the kidney and possibly the spleen is re- sponsible for the rise in WBC as observed in the fish fed with cooked sesame diets (Fazio et al., 2015). Antibodies are produced by lymphocytes, which act as a powerful defence against infection (Hua and Hou, 2020). Accord- ing to Akinwande et al. (2016), immunity of fish is mea- sured by the number of white blood cells it produces. The increased number of white blood cells seen in this study indicated that the fish had a high level of disease resistance (Shen et al., 2018) and it may be caused a rise in the rate of haemoglobin destruction or a reduction in its productivity or synthesis (Srivastava and Reddy, 2020). It would be observed that haemoglobin concen- tration reduced in the fish fed with the test diets as com- pared to control. Similar observations were recorded by Jimoh et al. (2020c) when Oreochromis niloticus was fed with diets containing toasted Jatropha curcas seed meal and Clarias gariepinus was fed withdiets containing Luffa cylindrica seed meal (Jimoh et al., 2020b). Other researchers recorded a decrease in haematocrit and hae- moglobin with increased ingredient levels (Blom et al., 2001; Jimoh, 2020a; Jimoh, 2020b). Furthermore, the histology of the kidney and liver of fish fed with the sesame diets appeared unaffected. Sim- ilar findings were reported by Mérida et al. (2010) when sunflower meal was used as a partial substitute in the case of juvenile sharp snout sea bream (Diplodus pun- tazzo) diets. Pereira et al. (2002) observed in the case of rainbow trout fed with partial substitution of brassica by-products. Hansen et al. (2006) made a similar obser- vation when gut and liver histology was examined in a cod fed diet containing various inclusion of plant pro- tein. The results of this study showed marked vacuola- tion of hepatocytes and did not link to dose-dependent Figure 2. Photomicrographs (H&E stained, 5µm section, x400 magnification) of the kidney of Clarias gariepinus fed (a) CTR: The tubular epithelium was completely eroded; (b) CSM230: There was diffuse degeneration of the tubular epitheli- um; (c) no visible lesion was observed in the kidneys of fish fed CSM115, CSM130, CSM145, CSM215, CSM245, CSM315, CSM330 and CSM345. 47Research Paper Jimoh, Fagbenro, Adeparusi dietary treatment. Olukunle (2011), Jimoh et al. (2020c) and Jimoh et al. (2020b) made the similar observation. Mild to moderate vacuolation of the hepatocytes were recorded in the livers of fish fed cooked Jatropha-based diets as compared to the soybean-based control diet (Jimoh et al., 2020a). The high vacuolation of the liver may be due to the organ’s high lipid content, which can be traced back to high lipid diets. The existence of nu- merous and voluminous lipid droplets in hepatocytes is a physiological response to dietary lipid excess or in- creased lipogenesis (Martins et al., 2007; Valente et al., 2011; Gatta et al., 2011). Conclusion Dietary replacement of soybean meal by differently cooked sesame seed meal in Clarias gariepinus diet did not affect haematology of the fish at lower inclusion lev- el. The addition of 15% and 30% inclusion level for 10 min cooking time; and 15% inclusion level for 20 and 30 min cooking time had similar profile with control. Although, there was marked vacuolation of hepatocytes in catfish subjected to various dietary treatments, and this was not related to dose-dependent dietary treatments. This in- dicated that the health of Clarias gariepinus fed cooked sesame seed meal diets did not put stress on the fish. References Adeyemo BT, Obande RA, Solomon SG. (2014). 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