Liver alteration and hematological and serum biochemical responses of common carp, Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus, 1758, following long-term feeding of pistachio (Pistacia vera) green hull extract as a source of natural phenol

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of pistachio green hull extract (PGHE) on hematological and serum biochemical changes in common carp, Cyprinus carpio. Three hundred common carp (11.65  1.65 g) were fed one of five different dietary treatments (with three replications) containing 0, 0.5, 1.5, 4.5 or 9 g PGHE kg1diet for ten continuous weeks. Each tank had a 90-L capacity and water flow rate of about 500 ml min_1.Total phenolic compounds of the different diets differed significantly (P < 0.001) according to the amount of PGHE. At the end of experiment, six fish were removed randomly from each treatment. Blood samples were taken for hematological and serum biochemical analyses at room temperature. Liver tissue samples were processed for histology and stained by H&E. The results indicated that all doses of tested PGHE induced no significant changes in hematocrit, hemoglobin, or erythrocytes, nor alkaline phosphatase, alanine transaminase, lactate dehydrogenase, total protein, albumin, globulin, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein, high-density lipoprotein, glucose or cholesterol in the serum. Leukocytes were higher (P < 0.01) in fish fed a 1.5, 4.5, or 9 g PGHE kg1 diet when compared to the 0.5 g PGHE kg1 diet group or the control. Serum aspartate transaminase in treatments containing a 4.5 or 9 g PGHE kg1 diet was significantly (P < 0.001) higher in comparison with the control. Liver histology showed focal necrosis, cytoplasm degeneration, lateral nuclei and an increase in Kupffer cells following PGHE administrations. The results of this trial indicated that although there were no significant changes in most hematological and biochemical parameters, PGHE could induce some adverse pathological effects on liver tissue.