Journal Article
Effects of Dietary Tryptophan on Growth Performance, Muscle Development and Quality, Gut Microbiota of Juvenile Procambarus clarkii
Ying Chen; Ling Zhu; Hanwu Wu; Yebing Yu; Xiaochuan Zheng; Bo Liu; Cunxin Sun; Xuwen Bing; Hongyan Tian; Ejaz Naqeebullah; Sharifi Saifullah; Yongfeng Zhao; Bo Liu
Fishes · Vol. 11, Issue 3 · pp. 188 · 2026
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary tryptophan (Trp) on growth performance and muscle quality of Procambarus clarkii. Six experimental diets with graded Trp concentrations (0.05%, 0.13%, 0.29%, 0.43%, 0.56%, 0.69%; designated Trp0.05 to Trp0.69) were fed to crayfish for 8 weeks. Growth parameters, muscle proximate composition, texture, histology, related gene expression, and intestinal microbiota were measured. Compared with the Trp0.05 group, the Trp0.43 group significantly increased FW, WGR, SGR, and muscle crude protein content, while decreasing FCR. It also improved muscle texture (hardness, springiness, cohesiveness, gumminess, chewiness), increased muscle fiber diameter, and reduced fiber density and the proportion of fibers