Nutritional Status Improvement in Malnourished Rat (Rattus norvegicus) after Seluang Fish (Rasbora spp.) Treatment

Abstract

Prevalence of malnutrition in Indonesia is still high although it has some potential source of nutrients. Seluang fish (Rasbora spp.) is a river fish consumed by the people of South Kalimantan, Indonesia. This study analyzed the improvement of nutritional status in the malnourished rats after treatment with Seluang Fish. The study used malnourished white rats (Rattus norvegicus) using a low protein and fat diet for 8 weeks. The rats were divided into three groups; malnourished group (M) without other dietary treatment, standard diet (P1) and seluang diet (P2) for a period of four weeks. The malnourished group was sacrificed first, and after four weeks treatment, other groups were sacrificed; blood and bones were taken for weight, protein levels, hemoglobin levels, bone length, bone calcium levels and IGF-1 levels. The results showed that the average of body weight for all the studied groups ranged between 190 to 220g. Seluang diet had the highest serum protein levels (4.388 mg/dL), hemoglobin (19.7 mg/dL) and IGF levels (388.7 ng/mL). Standard diet had the longest bone length (3.547 cm) and the highest Calcium levels of 1.68 mg/g. Based on these results, it was concluded that Seluang fish may have the potential to improve the nutritional status of malnourished rats.