Hematology and Health Status of Pangasianodon hypophthalmus Fed with Moringa oleifera Enriched Pellets and Infected with Aeromonas hydrophila

Moringa oliefera leaves can be used to improve the health of fish in general. To understand the effectiveness of moringa leaf powder addition in enhancing the immunity of Pangasionodon hypopthalmus toward Aeromonas hydrophila attack, a study was conducted from June to September 2022. The fish were fed with the moringa powder enriched pellets and then were infected with A. hydrophila. There were four treatments applied, namely negative control (no moringa and no infection), positive control (no moringa, infection), T1 (5 g/kg, infection), T2 (10 g/kg, infection), and T3 (15 g/kg, infection). The fingerlings of P. hypopthalmus (3.5±0.5g body weight) were reared for 45 days (1 fish/4L water) and fed 3 times/day, 5% of body weight. A. hydrophila was infected through injection (0.1 mL of 10⁸ CFU/mL) on the 31^st day. The hematology of the fish was checked on the 31^st day and on the 14^th day after infection (or on the 45^th day of the research). Results showed that after being treated with moringa for 30 days, the fish's hematology in all treatments showed almost no difference. However, the phagocytosis index was slightly higher in the moringa-treated fish, recording around 20.33% (in NC and PC) and 23.33-25.67% (in T1, T2, and T3, respectively). On the 14^th day after the infection, the phagocytic Index increased to 26.67, 29.00, and 30.33% in T1, T2 and T3, respectively. No positive control fish survived by the end of the experiment, while 88.89 – 97.77% of moringa-treated fish survived, andthe infection wound was completely cured. Data obtained indicate that the moringa addition in the fish feed pellets effectively improves the immunity of P. hypopthalmus toward A. hydrophila infection.