Phyto-based materials are increasingly being studied as viable alternatives to synthetic additives for enhancing fish performance, stimulating immunity, and promoting environmentally sustainable aquaculture practices. One such plant material is Chaya (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius), known for its broad health-promoting effects (Sobrinho et al., 2017). In view of this, the current study was designed to evaluate the impact of Chaya leaf (CH) powder on the growth performance and physiological well-being of hybrid catfish. A total of 225 post-juvenile hybrid catfish were divided into five dietary groups with varying CH inclusion levels, viz., 0% (control), 0.5%, 1%, 2%, and 4%. The fish were fed their respective diets daily at 9:00 h and 17:00 h over 56 days.
At the end of the feeding trial, the results showed that the highest final weight, weight gain (WG; fig. 1), specific growth rate, and thermal growth coefficient were recorded in the group fed CH 0.5%, which is similar to other CH-fed groups but differs significantly from the control (p < 0.05). The addition of CH had no effect (p > 0.05) on the hematology parameters among the various groups; however, the white blood cells, neutrophils (fig. 2), and lymphocyte counts were found to be higher in CH 4% and CH 0.5 %, respectively, compared to other dietary groups (p < 0.05). Similarly, fish-fed CH 4% diets had the highest total protein, albumin, globulin and total immunoglobulin (fig. 2), while lysozyme recorded the highest value in CH 0.5%, which is significantly higher than the control (p < 0.05). Furthermore, antioxidant enzyme activities (SOD and catalase) also showed significant statistical differences (p < 0.05), indicating a strengthened immune and oxidative stress defense system. The liver histology results revealed that low to moderate inclusion levels of CH powder (up to CH 1%) did not cause any adverse changes. In summary, the results of the current findings showed that the addition of CH powder in the diet of hybrid catfish improved the growth performance, enhanced the immune response, and protected the liver integrity.