Effect Of Nutrition On The Birth Weight And Multiple Births Of Trypanosome Infected Female <i>Rattus norevegicus</i>

Abstract

Trypanosomiasis is a disease of agricultural interest in livestock. The research was therefore aimed at finding out if adequate nutrition would ameliorate reproductive disorder in trypanosome-infected pregnant rats. Twenty female rats of 120 days old were used. They were kept 5 rats in each cage replicated three times. Four treatmentsdiet each containing trypanotolerant 80 mg of Vitamin E and 0.3 mg of selenium (additives) were used. In Treatment 1, trypanosome infected reproducing female rats were fed Diet 1 (Control) comprising chick mash mixed with the additives.In Treatment 2, the rats were fed Diet 2 comprising dietary protein and carbohydrate mixed with the addtives In Treatment 3 the rats were fed Diet 3 made up of dietary protein and the additives. In Treatment 4, the rats were fed Diet 4 made o dietary carbohydrate and the additivesThe birth weight was measured and number of ratlets from each treatment was also counted to determine the effect of the diets on the birth. Atthe end of the experiment, it was observed that trypanosome-infected pregnant rats fed Diet 2 (with adequate concentrations of carbohydrate and protein) significantly (P < 005) had higher birth weight o offspring and multiple births than the rats fed with other treatments diets indicating tha adequate nutrition promoted reproduction in trypanosome-infected rats.

Keywords: Nutrition, Birth-weight, Multiple births, Trypanosome-infection

Animal Research International Vol. 3 (3) 2006 pp. 545-548