ArticleAntioxidants (Basel, Switzerland)2025
Effectiveness of Astaxanthin as a Feed Supplement to Improve Growth Performance and Feed Utilization in Aquaculture Animals: A Meta-Analysis.
Article in Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed.
- Nutritional detoxification strategies in aquaculture: bioactive feed additives mitigating oxidative stress and xenobiotic toxicity in fish.Fish physiology and biochemistry · 2026Review
- Dietary astaxanthin supplementation improves semen quality and systemic physiological health in pubertal male Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus).Fish physiology and biochemistry · 2026Article
- Antioxidants: Mechanisms, Benefits, and the Importance of Extremophilic Microorganisms.Microorganisms · 2026Review
- High Dietary Plant Protein Impairs Astaxanthin Pigmentation in Rainbow Trout by Disrupting Cholesterol-Bile Acid Metabolism and Gut Microbiota.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Biological function of astaxanthin and its application in aquatic animal feeding.Food chemistry: X · 2025Article
- Therapeutic Potential of Astaxanthin for Body Weight Regulation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis with Dose-Response Assessment.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Impacts of commercial bile acids on growth performance, immune responses and expression genes of lipid metabolism in Nile tilapia fingerlings Oreochromis niloticus.Scientific reports · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Aquaculture, a vital component of global food supply, faces challenges from environmental stressors that compromise aquatic animal health and productivity. Astaxanthin, a potent carotenoid antioxidant, has shown promise in enhancing growth and stress resilience in aquaculture species, yet its effects remain inconsistent across studies. This meta-analysis systematically evaluates the efficacy of dietary astaxanthin supplementation on growth, feed utilization, antioxidant capacity, and immune function in aquaculture animals. Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, 64 studies (33 species, 964 comparisons) published prior to 2025 were analyzed using a random-effects model. Results demonstrated that astaxanthin significantly improved final body weight, weight gain rate, specific growth rate, survival rate, and protein efficiency ratio, while reducing feed conversion ratio. Additionally, it enhanced digestive enzyme activities, hepatopancreas antioxidant biomarkers, and immune parameters. The subgroup analysis revealed differences related to species, trophic level, and habitat, and estimated the optimal dose for key indicators. Despite heterogeneity and publication bias, adjusted effect sizes remained significant for most outcomes. These findings underscore astaxanthin's potential as a multifunctional feed additive to promote sustainable aquaculture, though its efficacy depends on species, dosage, and environmental context, warranting further mechanistic and optimization studies.
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What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.