BREEDFLAT - New approaches on the dietary-effects in broodfish: the role of nutrition on sustainable production of flatfish

About this project

<p>BREEDFLAT project aims to improve flatfish breeder’s performance by enhancing immune system capacity, largely affected during reproductive season, and gamete quality, by providing key-role nutrients for successful reproduction. Innovative approaches on the study of dietary effects will be attained to promote a sustainable competitive production of eggs and larvae. The consortium includes two Portuguese research teams, CCMAR (promoter) and CIIMAR, and the largest turbot producer, ACUINOVA. The Donor parties, Nord University, Akvaplan-niva, experienced in flatfish reproduction, and Sognaqua firm, will contribute with their experience in Atlantic halibut. This collaboration will enhance Portuguese centers (CCMAR, CIIMAR) performance with technology transfer from Nord (microRNAs, epigenetics), and strengthen future bilateral collaborations. The business sector (ACUINOVA) will gain from Norway experienced Aquaculture sector. The project focus in 3 important flatfish species for aquaculture diversification in Europe, Senegalese sole, turbot and Atlantic halibut, along 6 WPs. Specific breeders’ feed will be developed, considering each species’ nutritional requirements and efforts dedicated to gametogenesis. A tool-set of parameters will be developed, allowing characterization of reproductive and immune system performance. These tools will be used to evaluate the efficiency of natural feed products supplementation on the enhancement of reproduction and fish resistance. The final target is to achieve the improvement of offspring through a better nutrition to breeders. More robust juveniles will contribute to a next generation of breeders developed in captivity. These bases will provide a more sustainable Aquaculture diversification with high price commercial species, creating a benefit for fishfarms and feed suppliers in Europe, reducing economic and social disparities between donor and beneficiary states.</p>

Bilateral cooperation results

Donor BREEDFLAT partners were essential for the accomplishment of the main objectives, specifically because their participation allowed to create a multidisciplinary consortium, capable of addressing the reproductive problems from different perspectives, and providing an holistic approach with evidences that immune system and reproductive performance can be modulated by integrating antioxidants and immunostimulant compounds, present in some micro and macroalgae supplements. The combination of different techniques and the expertise provided by donor partners, was fundamental in using innovative techniques for the evaluation of immune system and gamete quality, and in using these parameters to demonstrate evidence of nutritional reprograming during gametogenesis process. Norwegian teams were experts in methylation and epigenome, where miRNAs mass-sequencing capacity and bioinformatics were fundamental to incorporate new tools to the evaluation of breeders’ performance, in particular for the study of extracellular vesicles cargo obtained from fish body fluids obtained by Portuguese teams. This new analysis was explored to provide evidence on the effects of feeds supplementation and opened a window for new collaborations within the consortium, that needs to be consolidated with new projects. Previous experience of the Norwegian teams with Atlantic halibut reproduction, was important to address specificities in this species for targeting improvements in broodstocks. The expertise from Norwegian teams was also an added value for approaching the problematic of the other two flatfish species. Portuguese teams had extensive experience in developing nutritional strategies for improving animal welfare and reduction of fish susceptibility to diseases and stressful rearing conditions, having strong skills on modulating and assessing fish immune and endocrine responses.

Project partners

• Nord universitet Donor project partner· Norway
• Sogn Aqua Juveniles AS Donor project partner· Norway
• AKVAPLAN-niva AS Donor project partner· Norway
• CIIMAR - Interdisciplinary Center for Marine and Environmental Research Project partner· Portugal
• ACUINOVA – ACTIVIDADES PISCICOLAS, SA Project partner· Portugal