Growth Response of Four Nile Tilapia Strains Fed on Diet Containing a Recombinant Teleostean Growth Hormone

Various Nile tilapia strains arecultured in Indonesia. This study was conducted to examine the growth response of four Nile tilapia strains, namely SULTANA (superior selected tilapia strain from Selabintana), NIRWANA (tilapia strain from Wanayasa), SRIKANDI (salinity resistant improvement from Sukamandi), and red tilapia fed on diet containing recombinant Epinephelus lanceolatus growth hormone (rElGH). In the first study, red tilapia were reared in 200-L glass aquaria and fed on artificial diet with different doses of crude rElGH protein, namely 0 (control), 0.03, 0.30, and 3.00 mg/kg diet. The results showed that growth, specific growth rate (SGR), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were notsignificantly differentamongtreatments (p>0.05), but significantly different when comparedto the control (p<0.05).The second study was performed in the hapa (2x1x1m3) settled in a concrete pond (20x10x1.5 m3). By using 3 mg rElGH/kg diet, the results ofthesecond study showed that the highest (p<0.05) SGR was obtained in SULTANA (3.73%), followed by NIRWANA (3.41%). SRIKANDI (3.36 %),and red tilapia (3.14%) strain. Lowest FCR (p<0.05) was found in SULTANA (0.84), followed by NIRWANA (0.99), SRIKANDI (1.02), and red tilapia (1.22) strains. Survival of the four strains were similar, ranging from 84.67 to 90.00% (p>0.05). The highest (p<0.05) liver and muscle glycogen, protein and fat retention, and RNA/DNA ratio were found in SULTANA, followed by NIRWANA