International Journal of Scientific Reports | February 2017 | Vol 3 | Issue 2 Page 49 International Journal of Scientific Reports Ogungbemi K et al. Int J Sci Rep. 2017 Feb;3(2):49-53 http://www.sci-rep.com pISSN 2454-2156 | eISSN 2454-2164 Original Research Article Effect of long term consumption of graded levels of powdered stored Ocimum gratissimum supplementation on the weight performance in Wistar rats Ogungbemi Kunle 1 *, Ishola D. Taiwo 1 , Ishola O. Tomilayo 2 , Arowora K. Adebisi 3 , Ilesanmi F. Funmilayo 1 INTRODUCTION Plant foods especially vegetables contribute substantially to both local diets and ethno-medicine in developing countries especially Nigeria. 1 In Africa Ocimum gratissimum belongs to the family laminacea and is widely distributed in tropical and warm regions of the world. 2 It is an erect, multi-branched perennial shrub that ABSTRACT Background: The influence of Ocimum gratissimum leaf supplementation on feed intake; weight change via growth performance of Wistar rats was investigated. Methods: A total of twenty (20) rats (average weight of 80 g±10 g), housed in a well-ventilated cages and given feed and water ad libitum for 2 weeks after which they were randomly allotted to four dietary treatments comprising 0%, 2.5%, 5% and 10%, of powdered stored Ocimum gratissimum leaf inclusion. Results: Group of rats fed with the lowest supplementation (2.5%) of Ocimum gratissimum showed significant increase (P< 0.05) in weekly feed intake than group fed with the highest supplementation (10%). While, there was no significant difference (P >0.05) between the groups fed with 0% and 5%. Also, the weight gain by the rats with 2.5% Ocimum gratissimum diet supplementation had highest weight gain which was significantly different to 10% supplementation and non-significantly different to 5% supplementation. Animals which received 2.5% of leaf of Ocimum gratissimum had the fastest growth rate, followed by those that received 5% and 10%. However, the control feed had higher body weight gain than 10% supplementation. The observable increase in the feed intake, weight gain and feed efficiency seen in the lowest supplementation level (2.5%) can be attributed to the spicing and seasoning of food with O. gratissimum and as such could also increase the palatability of the food. Furthermore, 2.5% has the highest dietary lipid which increases the palatability of food by absorbing and retaining flavor. Conclusions: It can be concluded that 2.5% O. gratissimum supplementation has a better palatability than other experimental diets which reflected on the performance characteristics of this treatment. Keywords: Ocimum gratissimum, Feed intake, Feed efficiency, Weight performance, Wistar rat 1 Department of Chemistry, Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute. Ibadan Zonal Office, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria 2 Department of Microbiology, Federal University of Technology, FUTA Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria 3 Department of Biochemistry, Federal University, Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria Received: 26 November 2016 Revised: 20 December 2016 Accepted: 29 December 2016 *Correspondence: Mr. Ogungbemi Kunle E-mail: kunleoguns484@gmail.com Copyright: © the author(s), publisher and licensee Medip Academy. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18203/issn.2454-2156.IntJSciRep20170357