Untitled - CNR

Marine research at CNRsidering both the resistance against antibioticsdeveloped by bacteria [21] and theneed to control fish and shellfish diseasesdue to bacterial infections, including vibriosis,common in aquaculture plants [22].The aquaculture industry is growing worldwidewith an estimated production, referredto 2004, of about 45.5 million tonnes[23] and the emergence of microbial diseasesis of major concern, implying seriousfinancial losses [24].The fatty acid profile of several examinedmacroalgae revealed also an interestingcomposition in PUFAs, particularly regardingthe ω3 and ω6 acids, which in humansplay a role in the prevention of cardiovasculardiseases as well as in the protectionagainst chronic inflammatory diseasessuch as arthritis, psoriasis, and diabetes[25, 26, 27, 28, 29]. At present,traditional European human food productspossess a ω3/ω6 ratio of approximately1/15–17. This is mainly due to the low consumptionof seafood set up against the increasingintake of ω6 fatty acids from vegetableoil. As a consequence, the Westerndiets are deficient in ω3 fatty acids and exceedin ω6 fatty acids [28]. In this projectseveral algae showed a ω3/ω6 fatty acid ratio>1, thus suggesting that these macroalgaemay be used as a natural source ofω3. In addition, also the occurrence of theessential C18 PUFAs in the algal extractsis important for both human and fish nutritionsince these organisms are not ableto synthesize them [30, 31, 32]. Also theω3/ω6 fatty acid ratio of the polychaete S.spallanzanii is interesting and accountedto 1:2. Moreover, in this species the averageprotein content is 26g/100g in dryweight. This value is very attractive foranimal feed considering that the concentrationof protein in traditional fodder is44% [33] and that in other exploited marineinvertebrates is even lower [34]. Inaddition, the worm proteo-lipidic compositionin comparison to the traditional foddersshowed no significant differences forproteins, lipids, fibres and ashes. Therefore,we can suggest the potential employmentof the studied marine organisms as adietary supplement for fishes nourishment.Indeed, the rising cost of fish feed worldwidenecessitates the consideration of everypossible natural resource as a potentialingredient in their preparation. Finally,the results on the growth capability of thestudied invertebrates and macroalgae underlaboratory conditions as well as in an aquaculturefarm revealed that the biomassesof the target marine organisms can be easilyobtained from a polyculture farm system.Therefore,polyculture rearing may becomea routine thus obtaining an increaseof exploitable biomass, avoiding environmentalinjuries and even reducing environmentalimpacts (e.g. the reduction of theexcess of nitrogen salts). The energeticsurplus is thus converted into biomass usefulin animal feeding and extraction of bioactivesubstances with positive effects fromeconomical and ecological points of view.As a consequence, the impact of the projectACTIBIOMAR, dealing with innovationwithin the biotechnological sector, is ofmajor importance on industrial production,aquaculture and commercial trade concerninghuman and reared species health.The involvement of private companies inthe project is aimed at transforming theknowledge into an economic value bymeans of the technological transfer of thescientific results to the pharmaceutical andaquaculture firms.2051