EVALUATION OF NATURAL ANTIBODIES IN Caiman latirostris, FED DIETS ENRICHED WITH FATTY ACIDS OF THE OMEGA-3 FAMILY

LATORRE, MARÍA A.; SIROSKI, PABLO A.; MOLEÓN, MARÍA S.; SIMONCINI, M. S.; MESTRE, A. P.; PIÑA, C. I.

Skukuza

Congreso; 24th Working meeting Crocodile Specialist Group/UICN; 2016

International Union Conservation of Nature/Crocodile Specialist Group

Previous studies evaluated how the addition of fatty acids (omega-3 family) to the diet contributes to health improvements of not only humans but of farmed animals. Enrichment the diet of captive caimans with flaxseeds could enhance the essential fatty acid content of its meat, thus increasing meat value, promoting growth, and improving their overall health status. In the present study, we fed caimans with five diets: 1. Diet Control (crushed chicken heads and dry ration, 70/30%), 2. Chia diet1 (control diet + 10% crushed chia seeds offered once a week), 3. Flax diet1 (control diet + 10% crushed flax seeds offered once a week), 4. Chia diet3 (control diet + 10% crushed chia seeds offered three times a week) and 5. Flax diet3 (control diet + 10% crushed flax seeds offered three times a week) during 30, 60, and 90-day treatments. During the study all caimans grew, but we did not find significant differences in weight or length among diet treatments or treatment period. Further, we found no significant differences in the immune system (antibodies) of these caimans, but we observed great variability in the immunological status of individuals. To obtain more definitive results, in future studies, we plan to evaluate the active response of the caiman immune system faced with pathogens under different diet treatments.