Effects of Dietary Protein and Lipid Levels on Growth, Feed Utilization and Body Composition of Adult Starry Flounder (Platichthys stellatus)

A 25-week feeding trial of two dietary protein (47 and $52\%$) and three dietary lipid level (7, 12 and $17\%$) factorial design with three replications were conducted to determine effects of dietary protein and lipid levels on growth, feed utilization and body composition of adult starry flounder (Platichthys stellatus), average initial weight 332 g, during the winter season. Survival of fish was not affected by either dietary protein or dietary lipid level. Weight gain, feed efficiency and protein efficiency ratio improved with dietary protein and lipid levels except for those of fish fed the $52\%$ protein diet with $17\%$ lipid. The best growth and feed utilization were observed in the $52\%$ protein diet with $12\%$ lipid, but were not significantly different from those of fish fed the $52\%$ protein diet with $17\%$ lipid or the $47\%$ protein diets with $17\%$ lipid levels. Hepatosomatic and visceral somatic indexes were significantly influenced by dietary protein level, but not by dietary lipid level. None of moisture, crude protein, crude lipid, or glycogen contents of dorsal muscle or liver in starry flounder except for crude lipid in dorsal muscle was significantly influenced by either dietary protein or dietary lipid level. Plasma cholesterol concentration was significantly influenced by both dietary protein and dietary lipid levels. The results of this study suggest that the diets containing $47\%$ protein with $17\%$ lipid or $52\%$ protein with $12-17\%$ lipid are optimal for growth and feed utilization of adult starry flounder under these experimental conditions.