Florfenicol residues in Nile tilapia after 10-d oral dosing in feed: effect of fish size

Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus were medicated with florfenicol (AQUAFLOR type A medicated article; Schering-Plough Animal Health, Summit, New Jersey) via a medicated ration at 15 mg florfenicol x kg fish body weight(-1) d(-1) for 10 d to compare the elimination kinetics of the test article in different size fish held at 25 degrees C. The groups of fish used in the study had mean weights of approximately 100, 250, and 500 g. In each trial, the fish were provided the medicated ration and 15 fish were processed at each of seven time points postfeeding for determination of the florfenicol concentration in serum and the florfenicol residue in the edible portion (composite muscle and skin). There was a trend toward shorter half-lives of elimination in the smaller fish. The elimination times in muscle-skin (times to reach the established tolerance concentration for channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus and salmonids of 1.0 microg florfenicol residue/g) and half-lives were 9.2 and 1.2 d (100 g), 8.6 and 1.7 d (250 g), and 12.7 and 2.2 d (500 g), respectively.