Dr. Reda Saleh, Senior Scientist at KAUST, Saudi Arabia, with researchers from the Institute of Aquaculture at Stirling University, Scotland, and Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, led a study to analyze the effects of krill oil- and soybean lecithin-based micro diets on the intestine and liver in seabream larvae.
"The researchers found that by including just 7% krill oil phospholipids in the seabream diet, the larvae exhibited enhanced growth and survival. Along with significantly less lipid (or fat) deposits in the intestine and liver, as compared to fish consuming the soybean lecithin diet," said Andras Ziener, VP of Business Development, Animal Health & Nutrition, Aker BioMarine.
Moreover, "this is in line with previous research that shows that the phospholipid source is important. Besides, krill oil phospholipids are consistently more effective in terms of health, and growth. Overall, survival in fish," said Reda Saleh Azam, Senior Scientist at KAUST.
Both krill oil and soybean lecithin are dietary sources of phospholipids. These are important sources of energy in fish, particularly during embryonic and early larval development. Phospholipids possess a high content of omega-3 fatty acids that are easier to absorb and digest. In addition to their feed-attractant properties that support better diet quality in fish. Previous studies have also shown that phospholipids provide inositol and choline, which are important for increasing the absorption of nutrients.
The experimental diets used in the study contained increasing phospholipid contents derived from either krill phospholipids, provided by Aker BioMarine, or soybean lecithin. The diets were manually delivered to the fish 14 times/day over one month. The larval sampling, to measure the effects of the five micro diets, was conducted on day 45 of the experiment.
The study, titled Different phosphatidylcholine and n-3 HUFA contents in macro diets for gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) larvae: effects on histological changes in intestine and liver, was authored by Reda Saleh, Monica Betancor, Asaad Hassan Mohamed, Tamer El-Sayed Ali and Marisol Izquierdo.
QRILL Aqua's key market differentiator is that it improves fish health and performance. In aqua diets, QRILL™ Aqua functions as a feeding stimulant leading to increased feed uptake and enhanced growth. QRILL™ Aqua improves growth performance, health, fillet quality, and stress and disease resistance of fish. More information on www.qrillaqua.com.
Aker BioMarine is a biotech innovator and Antarctic krill-harvesting company, dedicated to improving human and planetary health. The company develops krill-based ingredients for pharmaceutical, nutraceutical (Superba®, NKO®, and K·REAL®), aquaculture (QRILL™ Aqua), and animal feed applications (QRILL™ Pet),
Including INVI™, a highly concentrated protein isolate, and LYSOVETA™, a targeted transporter of EPA and DHA from krill. Aker BioMarine's fully transparent value chain stretches from sustainable krill harvesting in pristine Antarctic waters through its Montevideo logistics hub, Houston production plant, and to customers around the world.
The company's strong focus on sustainability inspired the launch of AION by Aker BioMarine. This is a circularity company that helpscompanies to recycle and reuse waste.
