High dietary starch impaired growth performance, liver histology and hepatic glucose metabolism of juvenile largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides.

A 60‐day experiment was carried out to investigate dietary starch levels on growth performance, hepatic glucose metabolism and liver histology of largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides. Fish (initial weight 22.00 ± 0.02 g) were fed five graded levels of dietary corn starch (0, 50, 100, 150 and 200 g/kg). Fish fed low (0 and 50 g/kg) dietary starch showed significantly higher weight gain than other groups (p <.05). Liver lipid and glycogen accumulations were induced when dietary starch higher than 100 g/kg. After 20 days of feeding, hexokinase activity and mRNA expression were decreased in fish fed dietary starch higher than 150 g/kg (p <.05) and the pyruvate kinase showed the opposite tendency. Insulin receptor 1 (irs1), glucagon‐like peptide‐1 receptor and glucose transport protein 2 (glut2) mRNA expression were decreased with the increasing dietary starch after 10 days of feeding (p <.05). These results indicated gluconeogenesis was depressed and β‐oxidation was enhanced in response to high dietary starch, while the glycolysis was inhibited and endocrine system was impaired when fish fed high dietary starch; then, glucose homeostasis was disturbed and finally led to the glucose intolerance of largemouth bass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]