The Potential of Capsicum annum Extracts to Prevent Lactococcosis in Tilapia
Keywords:
Lactococcus garvieae, Chili pepper (Capsicum annum), Tilapia
Abstract
The capsaicin was extracted in-house from locally purchased chili pepper (Capsicum annum). Varying concentration of capsaicin was mixed with Lactococcus garvieae each and inoculated on mueller hinton agar to determine the minimum bactericidal concentration. Four groups of 100 fish each were injected with either 1) Capsaicin, 2) bacteria and capsaicin, 3) bacteria and 4) normal saline (negative control). The fish were observed for 7 days post treatment and experiment was repeated three times. Protection against infection was measured by the lack of clinical disease and survivability of the fish during period of experimentation. The minimum bactericidal concentration of capsaicin on growth of Lactococcus garvieae was 0.1967mg/ml. Significantly, more fish in the bacteria and capsaicin group survived (p<0.0001) compared to those injected with bacteria only. The findings suggest that chili pepper extract can protect tilapia against L. garvieae infection.References
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Amal, M.N.A. and Zamri-Saad, M., 2011. Streptococcosis in tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus): a review.
Bwalya, P., Simukoko, C., Hang'ombe, B.M., Støre, S.C., Støre, P., Gamil, A.A., Evensen, Ø. and Mutoloki, S., 2020. Characterization of streptococcus-like bacteria from diseased Oreochromis niloticus farmed on Lake Kariba in Zambia. Aquaculture, 523, p.735185. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2020.735185
Careaga, M., Fernández, E., Dorantes, L., Mota, L., Jaramillo, M.E. and Hernandez-Sanchez, H., 2003. Antibacterial activity of Capsicum extract against Salmonella typhimurium and Pseudomonas aeruginosa inoculated in raw beef meat. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 83(3), pp.331-335. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0168-1605(02)00382-3
Cichewicz, R.H. and Thorpe, P.A., 1996. The antimicrobial properties of chili peppers (Capsicum species) and their uses in Mayan medicine. Journal of ethnopharmacology, 52(2), pp.61-70. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-8741(96)01384-0
Confessor, M.V., Mendonça, L.E., Mourão, J.S. and Alves, R.R., 2009. Animals to heal animals: ethnoveterinary practices in semiarid region, Northeastern Brazil. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 5, pp.1-9. Available at: http://www.ethnobiomed.com/content/5/1/37
Martínez Cruz, P., Ibáñez, A.L., Monroy Hermosillo, O.A. and Ramírez Saad, H.C., 2012. Use of probiotics in aquaculture. International scholarly research notices, 2012(1), p.916845. Available at: https://doi.org/10.5402/2012/916845
Diepvens, K., Westerterp, K.R. and Westerterp-Plantenga, M.S., 2007. Obesity and thermogenesis related to the consumption of caffeine, ephedrine, capsaicin, and green tea. American journal of physiology-Regulatory, integrative and comparative physiology. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.00832.2005
El-Deek, A.A., Al-Harthi, M.A., Osman, M., Al-Jassas, F. and Nassar, R., 2012. Hot pepper (Capsicum Annum) as an alternative to oxytetracycline in broiler diets and effects on productive traits, meat quality, immunological responses and plasma lipids. European Poultry Science, 76(2), pp.73-80.
Fieira, C., Oliveira, F., Calegari, R.P., Machado, A. and Coelho, A.R., 2013. In vitro and in vivo antifungal activity of natural inhibitors against Penicillium expansum. Food Science and Technology, 33, pp.40-46. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0101-20612013000500007
Genschick, S., Kaminski, A.M., Kefi, A.S. and Cole, S.M., 2017. Aquaculture in Zambia: An overview and evaluation of the sector’s responsiveness to the needs of the poor. CGIAR Research Program on Fish Agri-Food Systems Working Paper, FISH-2017-, p. 32.
Gueye, E.F., 2002. Newcastle disease in family poultry: prospects for its control through ethnoveterinary medicine. Livestock research for rural development, 14(5), pp.80-91. Available at: http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd14/5/guey145a.htm
Van Hai, N., 2015. Research findings from the use of probiotics in tilapia aquaculture: a review. Fish & shellfish immunology, 45(2), pp.592-597. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fsi.2015.05.026
Hanif, S.M., Meher, M.M., Biswas, G.C. and Anower, A.M., 2016. Field study on efficacy of red pepper (capsicum annum) along with antibiotics against newcastle disease in broiler at Narail Sadar Upazilla, Bangladesh. Wayamba Journal of Animal Science, 8, pp.1460-1466.
Harikrishnan, R. and Balasundaram, C., 2005. Modern trends in Aeromonas hydrophila disease management with fish. Reviews in Fisheries Science, 13(4), pp.281-320. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/10641260500320845
Khan, M.I.C.M. and Hanif, W., 2006. Ethnoveterinary medicinal uses of plants from Samahni valley dist. Bhimber,(Azad Kashmir) Pakistan. Asian Journal of Plant Sciences, 5(2), pp.390-396.
Kobata, K., Todo, T., Yazawa, S., Iwai, K. and Watanabe, T., 1998. Novel capsaicinoid-like substances, capsiate and dihydrocapsiate, from the fruits of a nonpungent cultivar, CH-19 Sweet, of pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 46(5), pp.1695-1697. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1021/jf980135c
Koffi-Nevry, R., Kouassi, K.C., Nanga, Z.Y., Koussémon, M. and Loukou, G.Y., 2012. Antibacterial activity of two bell pepper extracts: Capsicum annuum L. and Capsicum frutescens. International journal of food properties, 15(5), pp.961-971. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/10942912.2010.509896
Kurian, A.L. and Starks, A.N., 2002. HPLC analysis of capsaicinoids extracted from whole orange habanero chili peppers. Journal of food science, 67(3), pp.956-962. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2621.2002.tb09435.x
Marini, E., Magi, G., Mingoia, M., Pugnaloni, A. and Facinelli, B., 2015. Antimicrobial and anti-virulence activity of capsaicin against erythromycin-resistant, cell-invasive group A streptococci. Frontiers in microbiology, 6, p.1281. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2015.01281
Maroyi, A., 2012. Use of traditional veterinary medicine in Nhema communal area of the Midlands province, Zimbabwe. African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines, 9(3), pp.315-322. Available at: 10.4314/ajtcam.v9i3.3
Meyburgh, C.M., Bragg, R.R. and Boucher, C.E., 2017. Lactococcus garvieae: an emerging bacterial pathogen of fish. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms, 123(1), pp.67-79. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3354/dao03083
Omolo, M.A., Wong, Z.Z., Mergen, A.K., Hastings, J.C., Le, N.C., Reiland, H.A., Case, K.A. and Baumler, D.J., 2014. Antimicrobial properties of chili peppers. Journal of Infectious Diseases and Therapy, 2(4), pp.2332-0877. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.4172/2332-0877.1000145
Shen, S., Qian, J. and Ren, J., 2010. Ethnoveterinary plant remedies used by Nu people in NW Yunnan of China. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 6, pp.1-10. Available at: http://www.ethnobiomed.com/content/6/1/24
Tran, N., Chu, L., Chan, C.Y., Genschick, S., Phillips, M.J. and Kefi, A.S., 2019. Fish supply and demand for food security in Sub-Saharan Africa: An analysis of the Zambian fish sector. Marine Policy, 99, pp.343-350. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2018.11.009
Usman, M.G., Rafii, M.Y., Ismail, M.R., Malek, M.A. and Latif, M.A., 2014. Capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin determination in chili pepper genotypes using ultra-fast liquid chromatography. Molecules, 19(5), pp.6474-6488. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules19056474
Watts, J.E., Schreier, H.J., Lanska, L. and Hale, M.S., 2017. The rising tide of antimicrobial resistance in aquaculture: sources, sinks and solutions. Marine drugs, 15(6), p.158. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/md15060158
Published
2025-08-14
How to Cite
1.
Ndashe K, Ngh’ake S, Pola E, Sakala E, Kabwali E, Moonga L, Kefi A, Hang’ombe B. The Potential of Capsicum annum Extracts to Prevent Lactococcosis in Tilapia. Journal of Agricultural and Biomedical Sciences [Internet]. 14Aug.2025 [cited 3Oct.2025];9(3). Available from: https://journals.unza.zm/index.php/JABS/article/view/1494
Section
Veterinary Medicine

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