Total Protein and Cholesterol Concentrations in Brain Regions of Male Rabbits Fed Pawpaw Peel Meal Based Diets

Pawpaw parts have for long been recommended for the dry season feeding of rabbits in the tropics. Due to the deleterious effects of papain (in pawpaw parts) on some aspects of the physiology of livestock, an investigation was made of the effect of pawpaw peel meal on the total protein and cholesterol levels of the brain regions of male rabbits using 16 bucks of mixed breeds. The animals were randomly allotted in groups of 4 to 4 dietary treatments containing 0% (control), 10%, 20% and 30% pawpaw peel meal. After 7 weeks of feeding, all the animals were sacrificed and the total protein and cholesterol concentrations in the brain regions evaluated. The results showed similarities (P>0.05) between the treatments in total protein concentrations in the cerebral cortex, medulla, hypothalamus, amygdala, mesencephalon and hippocampus. Total protein concentrations however differed significantly between diets (P<0.05) in the cerebellum and pons varoli with the lowest values in the diet with the highest level of pawpaw peel meal in both cases. Cholesterol levels on the other hand were significantly increased (P<0.05) with increasing levels of pawpaw peel meal inclusion in the cerebral cortex and mid brain but were similar between diets (P>0.05) in all other brain regions. The preliminary conclusion from this study is that feeding pawpaw peel meal up to a level of 30% may suppress protein synthesis and affect the protein-lipid complexes in the brains of these animals.