Environmental enrichment (EE) can improve the welfare of captive fish. Its objective is to provide new sensorial and motor stimulation in order to help meet their behavioural, physiological, morphological and psychological needs, whilst reducing stress and frequency of abnormal behaviours. In fish farms, rearing environments are usually designed from a human perspective and based on economic requirements

Vitamin E (VE) is composed of a group of fat-soluble molecules, from which the most active homologous is α-tocopherol. VE is a structural component of cell membranes with a potent chain-breaking antioxidant action, which plays a main role in several biological processes. In cultured fish, VE can prevent peroxidation of cellular and subcellular membrane phospholipids and also red blood cells, leading

Crustaceans are often exposed to hypoxic stress in intensive aquaculture systems. Such stress leads to physiological, behavioural and biochemical changes, which can cause various metabolic disorders or even death. Crustacean response mechanisms to hypoxia stress are known to be complex, with their regulation involving multiple genes. In this review, after briefly exploring some known causes of hypoxic

The ultimate goal of a literature review is the advancement of the given subject. An objective that is realised not via the reporting of novel findings, observations, data, methods or theories, but via the critical evaluation and logical synthesis of prior studies. By identifying, collecting, reporting, synthesising, comparing and contrasting the findings of published studies in a specific domain,

FLOCponics is an alternative type of aquaponics that integrates biofloc technology (BFT) with soilless plant production. The aims of this paper are to present a detailed overview of the FLOCponics system's designs and performance, discuss their sustainability, highlight the current challenges, and give directions for future research. Data sources include papers containing the keywords bioflocs and

Phagocytosis is a fundamental immune function against foreign microorganisms and abnormal cells, and it is also a bridge between innate and adaptive immunity. Blood as the direct living environment of various immune cells is a crucial site for phagocytosis. In this review, we firstly summarized the morphological structure and cytochemical characteristics of teleost peripheral blood cells, divided them

Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas) have been introduced worldwide for aquaculture, which can benefit food sovereignty and economic development; however, established non-native populations may present risks for local organisms and habitats. We reviewed the documented introductions of C. gigas by country to evaluate factors related to introduction, establishment and production, and to determine impacts

Shrimp production, using a small-scale enclosed pond system, is a rapidly growing aquaculture sector, which is valued around USD 18.30 billion in 2020. Intensified shrimp culture leads to the outbreak of transmissible diseases to eventually cause a huge loss in the production process and thus the economy. Studies on microRNA (miRNA) reveal that miRNA has an influential role in the host-pathogen interaction

Salmonids are the third major farmed finfish species after carps and tilapines, and thus contribute to global food fish production. However, as the aquaculture industry continues to grow, several challenges have emerged. Left unchecked, current problems will hinder aquaculture development. Metabolomics is one of the powerful biotechnological tools that will contribute to solving some of the pressing

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are widely distributed effector molecules that provide a first line of defence for organisms that lack adaptive immunity, such as crustaceans. They also represent bioactive molecules with great potential as therapeutic agents in aquaculture and biomedicine. Over the last years, an intensive research effort has been devoted to the identification and characterisation of

In this review, we summarize and discuss the main interactions affecting salmon farming and pinniped populations worldwide. Out of seven pinnipeds commonly engaged in these interactions, only one, Eumetopias jubatus, is currently listed, as ‘Near Threatened’, by the IUCN. This scenario may change as the salmon farming industry is expanding to higher latitudes and climate change is threatening many

Shellfish aquaculture has developed rapidly, and the annual production of shell waste by-products exceeds 10 million tons. The reutilization of shell waste is a severe problem in terms of environmental protection and the development of the circular economy. Due to its limited economic value, shell waste has generally been discarded or sent to landfill without any further processing and reutilization

With the fast-growing population and rising prosperity in the world, producing a sufficient amount of animal-based food products has become a critical challenge faced by mankind. Nowadays, arable land has almost been fully utilized, and capture fisheries cannot provide sufficient yield (FAO 2020). However, aquaculture is, globally, the fastest growing farmed food production sector, showing 5.3% increase

Seaweeds account for nearly 30% of global aquaculture production by volume, and their cultivation provides important opportunities for employment and wealth generation, particularly in rural coastal communities. Eucheumatoids (Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp.) are tropical red algae commercially cultivated as raw material for production of carrageenans, particularly in South-East Asia and the Western

The substantial loss of seed mussels during the early stages of longline aquaculture—often exceeding 95%—is a major issue that erodes the security and profitability of production while limiting the sustainable expansion of this industry in many parts of the world. There are many biological, environmental and procedural factors that potentially cause seed losses. The present understanding of these factors

Animal nutrition studies rely on traditional and advanced analytical techniques that have increased our understanding about the nutritional physiology of valuable species, leading to improved productivity, sustainability and further diversification. In the case of aquaculture nutrition, a vast amount of knowledge has accumulated in relation to different physiological responses elicited by experimental

Aquaculture has been the fastest-growing food production sector during the last decades. The supply–demand gap for fish is constantly widening, and declining freshwater availability is becoming a major limiting factor for production. Exploring alternative water resources, such as treated wastewater (TWW), has become a growing strategy for coping with the increasing water demand in agriculture. Reuse

Enterococci possess a high propensity to spread their resistance genes between intra- and inter-species via mobile genetic elements. Potential reservoirs for acquiring antibiotic resistance genes by commensal and environmental bacteria, including enterococci, have raised significant public health concerns over recent decades. This concern is further complicated by the rampant use of tetracyclines in

As aquaculture continues to grow and intensify, there is an increasing public concern over the welfare of farmed fish. Stress and production-related pathologies and repressed growth are examples of the challenges facing aquaculture, and their impacts could be minimised by effective identification of the early signs of impaired welfare. Many welfare monitoring methods have been recommended; however

The development of aquaculture is closely related to human life. Crustaceans play essential roles in aquaculture. However, the cultivation of crustaceans has been plagued by various diseases, causing substantial economic losses. At present, the occurrence of shrimp diseases is directly related to environmental stress and physiological dysfunction, and especially environmental stress has become an important

The aquaponic principle is the coupling of animal aquaculture (e.g. fish) with plant production (e.g. vegetables) for saving resources. At present, various definitions of aquaponics exist, some bearing the risk of misinterpretation by dismissing the original meaning or being contradictory. In addition, there is no standard terminology for the aspects of coupling between the aquaponic subsystems. In

Grouper aquaculture is currently trending towards production of hybrids, due to their improved growth and disease resistance. The predominant cross is between tiger grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus) females and giant grouper (Epinephelus lanceolatus) males (TGGG). Sustainable TGGG aquaculture development is limited by reliance on wild-caught ‘trash’ fish as feed rather than commercially formulated

Interest on jellyfish research has significantly increased over the last two decades, mostly driven by the potential benefits of their high-end uses. Recent efforts have been put forward towards the commercial use of scyphozoan jellyfish, although the pipeline leading to their full exploitation is still at an early stage of development. Indeed, further research and several technical advances are still

Atlantic cod is a historically abundant species in the North Atlantic region and has contributed to the prosperity of many nations. But a decline in stocks in the last century has prompted to initiate commercial farming of cod in captive conditions. Several approaches have been employed ranging from stock enhancement, capture-based aquaculture and intensive cod farming. However, except for the enhancement

Lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus L.) are increasingly being used as cleaner fish to control parasitic sea lice, one of the most important threats to salmon farming. However, lumpfish cannot survive feeding solely on sea lice, and their mortality in salmon net-pens can be high, which has welfare, ethical and economic implications. The industry is under increasing pressure to improve the welfare of lumpfish

Cryptocaryon irritans (Brown, 1951) is an obligate parasite that mainly invades the skin, fins and gills of marine fish and causes marine ‘white spot disease’. It is common to aquarium and maricultured fish and causes high mortality due to its widespread geographical distribution, indiscriminate host specificity, short and simple life cycle, and high level of virulence. Numerous physical methods and

In the aquaculture industry, selective breeding has played an important role in increasing aquaculture production significantly. To meet the global growing demand for high quality proteins, it is essential to apply novel technologies to accelerate breeding to facilitate the increase in aquaculture production. Gene and genome editing technologies, including ZFNs, TALLENS and Crispr/Cas9, are promising

Salinity is a basic factor in microalgal aquaculture production that is easier to manage than other external factors. Optimized use of salinity is key to achieving widespread microalgal production that is more sustainable by avoiding freshwater inputs. Since salinity influences the content of many high-value lipid compounds in microalgae, assessing how the diverse plasticity of salt metabolism in numerous

We retrieved data from various studies to investigate the consequences of insect meal production and insect meal-based diets with respect to their environmental impact, including global warming potential, energy use, land use, water use, acidification, eutrophication as well as to economic fish-in fish-out ratio and solid waste output production. Analysis indicated that insect meals’ production exerted

The ecosystem approach to aquaculture (EAA) is a strategy for the sustainable development of the aquaculture sector, but the question of how it can be practically implemented remains unclear. Indicators that can be applied at relevant scales of impact and that reflect the environmental status and change offer a means of operationalizing EAA. Therefore, a systematic literature review was carried out

Aquaculture can have negative environmental impacts, adding to the suite of anthropogenic stressors that challenge coastal ecosystems. However, a growing body of scientific evidence indicates that the commercial cultivation of bivalve shellfish and seaweed can deliver valuable ecosystem goods and services, including provision of new habitats for fish and mobile invertebrate species. We completed a

Oysters are a healthy and excellent source of lean protein (content up to 45%–57%). In addition, polypeptides extracted from hydrolysis of oyster protein by enzymatic hydrolysis or fermentation have diverse bioactivities, such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, antihypertensive, promoting sexual reproduction, anti-inflammatory and anticancer. However, there are still great challenges in the preparation

Surface-based cages are the dominant production technology for the marine finfish aquaculture industry. However, issues such as extreme weather events, poor environmental conditions, interactions with parasites, and conflicts with other coastal users are problematic for surface-based aquaculture. Submerged cages may reduce many of these problems and commercial interest in their use has increased. However

Probiotics are microbial cells with multifunctional properties including immunostimulatory function in their host. Today, probiotics are widely used for controlling diseases in aquaculture, especially for rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, as the most important commercial cold-water fish in the world. So far, many studies have been conducted on the effect of probiotics on the immune system of rainbow

Green macroalgae (Chlorophyta) currently represent a residual fraction (<1%) of global seaweed biomass production landings. In turn, red (Rhodophyta) and brown (Ochrophyta) macroalgae dominate the remaining percentage of aquaculture production, exceeding 32 million tonnes per annum. However, the industry relies on a relatively low number of species, in which as few as seven macroalgal genera collectively

Catfish (Siluriformes) are important species for aquaculture worldwide, with an annual production in 2018 of ca. 6 million t. This review focuses on reassessing larval development, first feeding, and early rearing practices of the most important farmed catfish species, along with some candidate species for aquaculture diversification: Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Pangasiidae), Clarias gariepinus (Clariidae)

Dietary supplementation is an effective strategy for boosting the innate immune response in fishes. It involves the use of functional ingredients that bear the potential for mitigating the deleterious effects of chemotherapeutics (bioaccumulation and development of drug-resistant pathogens), as a more ecologically responsible approach to fish farming. With the emergence of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics

Fish coloration, evolved from selection and adaptation, is a prominent feature of remarkable aquaculture merits. Fish possess more pigment cell types than any other vertebrates and are an excellent model for the study of mechanisms underlying skin coloration and pigmentation at levels from molecular genetics to system biology. How to effectively improve skin colour in ornamental and aquaculture fish

As aquaculture continues to grow, so does the requirement for environmentally sustainable and cost-effective aquafeed. With an expected increase in aquafeed demand, it is important (now more than ever) to investigate and utilize new aquafeed ingredients that do not deplete natural resources and, instead, may have positive impacts to help control climate change. Aquaculture has become the largest consumer

Fish harbour complex and dynamic microbiota in their mucosal surfaces. Due to the vital role of commensal microbiota in many biological functions including growth enhancement, nutrition, development, metabolism and immune response, many scholars have begun to refer to the microbiome as an ‘extended self’. Several studies have indicated that a normal microbiota contributes to fish health, and disturbances

Novel genome editing techniques allow for efficient and targeted improvement of aquaculture stock and might be a solution to solve challenges related to disease and environmental impacts. This review has retrieved the latest research on genome editing on aquacultured finfish species, exploring the technological progress and the scope. Genome editing has most often been used on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis

Glucose and lipid metabolisms are central in determining the growth and the health status of cultured fish and thus are of pivotal interest for modern aquaculture. Adiponectin is a fat-derived hormone that plays a vital role in glucose and lipid homeostasis. While abundant knowledge is available on adiponectin in mammals, less is known in fish, though it has been documented that adiponectin is certainly

Aquaculture currently accounts for approximately half of all seafood produced and is the fastest growing farmed food sector globally. Marine bivalve aquaculture, the farming of oysters, mussels and clams, represents a highly sustainable component of this industry and has major potential for global expansion via increased efficiency, and numbers of, production systems. Artificial spat propagation (i

Cell culture has become an indispensable part of modern research and is considered the best alternatives for different biological research on whole animals as they mimic the host cellular genetic homogeneity and also reduces the variability of in vivo responses. Hence, there has been increasing development of cell lines by different research groups and companies globally. For this reason, to cover

Over the last few decades, the demand-driven growth in aquaculture has been tremendous due to development and adoption of cutting-edge technologies and production systems such as intensification and high input aquaculture. This growth, however, has witnessed an insurgence of various environmental and husbandry-related stressors posing major challenges to the aquaculture sector limiting its further

In aquaculture, fish behaviour monitoring and analysis can provide the information required to guide daily feeding, schedule making and disease diagnosis. Technology such as machine vision, bio-loggers and acoustic systems is essential to analyse fish behaviour. This paper focuses on tools and algorithms for fish behaviour quantification analysis. The goal is to present their basic concepts and principles

In fish, as in higher animals, the normal ontogenesis of the gonads is the basis for successful reproduction. Gonadal differentiation and development depend on the genetic cascade that programmes the events. Eventually, gonads become the sites for the maturation of gametes, which are originally derived from the primordial germ cells (PGCs) and form the cellular basis of reproduction. In fish hormones

Freshwater fish farming is the largest sub-sector of the global aquaculture industry, with its continued success dependent on the industry’s ability to be productive and sustainable. In recent years, microorganisms have been increasingly recognised for their role in the health and overall performance of aquatic organisms, providing the aquaculture industry with a promising avenue for further success

The Macrobrachium rosenbergii nodavirus causes white tail disease, which primarily infects giant freshwater prawns, Macrobrachium rosenbergii. The infection leads to almost 100% mortality in post-larvae, causing significant economic losses in aquaculture farms. To develop effective measures against outbreaks, a good understanding of the virus is essential. In this review, we discuss key aspects of

The recent advances in the field of aquaculture over the last decade has helped the cultured-fish industry production sector to identify problems and choose the best approaches to achieve high-volume production. Understanding the emerging roles of non-coding RNA (ncRNA) in the regulation of fish physiology and health will assist in gaining knowledge on the possible applications of ncRNAs for the advancement

Sumithion is an organophosphate insecticide, extensively used to remove tiger bug from aquaculture ponds prior to the release of fish larvae. Its usage in aquaculture may initially assist in insect eradication; however, the harmful effects of sumithion may surpass the beneficial effects and may be alarming for the farmed fish and other aquatic organisms. This study summarizes the consequential effects

While the UK is the fourth largest aquaculture producer in Europe by volume, it is the second largest by value with an annual first sale value of around £1 billion. Over 90% of this value is from Atlantic salmon farmed in Scotland, but other finfish and shellfish aquaculture species are important to several UK regions. In this review, we describe the state of the art in UK aquaculture breeding and

Each year, there is a significant rise in demand for global food production due to population increase and a rise in demand for protein food sources. This puts pressure on capture fishery as fish is a preferred protein source worldwide. However, the more resources we put into the capture fisheries to obtain maximum catch, the faster the fisheries stock becomes depleted. The best option left to produce

Ecdysone receptor (EcR) is the primary regulator of the ecdysteroid signalling pathway, a critical pathway that directly links to moulting. In addition, EcR also regulates growth, development, reproduction and regeneration in crustaceans. However, there remains a huge gap of knowledge between the detailed structure and functional role(s) of crustacean EcR compared to that of insects. Motif and phylogenetic

The Sry-related high mobility group box (Sox) genes family is a group of transcription factors playing crucial roles during reproduction and development. At least 50% amino acid sequences of Sox protein family are similarity to the sex-determining region on the Y chromosome (Sry). The sox family exists throughout the invertebrates and vertebrates and plays an important role in sex determination and

One of the major challenges in any sustainable aquaculture production systems is the accumulation of nitrogenous waste such as ammonia and its biological nitrification products viz nitrite and nitrate. Considering the bio-security issues, amelioration of these wastes without water exchange can be accomplished only by way of establishing in situ nitrification and denitrification through biofilters/bioreactors

With a growing human population and the need to protect our oceans from overfishing, there is a requirement for society to source alternative means of sustainable protein. Mussel aquaculture has rapidly expanded in many countries serving as an important supply of protein, but its development has been limited due to competition for coastal space and the associated environmental impacts of farming in

The Vibrio genus belonging to the Splendidus clade includes 16 described species and can infect a broad host range of cultured animals in marine environments, resulting in various diseases and high mortality, thus leading to high economic losses in aquaculture. Here, we provide a brief description of the virulence of Splendidus clade pathogens and the known or potential virulence factors as well as