Screening for Health-Promoting Fatty Acids in Ascidians and Seaweeds Grown under the Influence of Fish Farming Activities
Open accessAbstract
The present study aimed to contrast the fatty acid (FA) profile of ascidians (Ascidiacea) and seaweeds (sea lettuce, Ulva spp. and bladderwrack, Fucus sp.) occurring in a coastal lagoon with versus without the influence of organic-rich effluents from fish farming activities. Our results revealed that ascidians and seaweeds from these contrasting environments displayed significant differences in their FA profiles. The n-3/n-6 ratio of Ascidiacea was lower under the influence of fish farming conditions, likely a consequence of the growing level of terrestrial-based ingredients rich on n-6 FA used in the formulation of aquafeeds. Unsurprisingly, these specimens also displayed significantly higher levels of 18:1(n-7+n-9) and 18:2n-6, as these combined accounted for more than 50% of the total pool of FAs present in formulated aquafeeds. The dissimilarities recorded in the FAs of seaweeds from these different environments were less marked (≈5%), with these being more pronounced in the FA classes of the brown seaweed Fucus sp. (namely PUFA). Overall, even under the influence of organic-rich effluents from fish farming activities, ascidians and seaweeds are a valuable source of health-promoting FAs, which confirms their potential for sustainable farming practices, such as integrated multi-trophic aquaculture.
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Carotenoids such as astaxanthin and β-carotene help neutralise reactive oxygen species, mitigating oxidative stress and reducing cellular damage associated with ageing and chronic inflammation.
“Carotenoids such as astaxanthin and β-carotene help neutralise reactive oxygen species (ROS), thereby mitigating oxidative stress and reducing cellular damage associated with ageing and chronic inflammation [20].”
From Microalgae Bioactives for Functional Food Innovation and Health Promotion (2025) · cites this paper as [20]
The Introduction (page unavailable) mentions anti-oxidative properties of marine n-3 fatty acids, not carotenoids. The Discussion (page unavailable) concerns fatty-acid profiles; searches for astaxanthin, β-carotene, ROS, ageing, and chronic inflammation found no passage supporting the claimed mechanism or effects. (LLM, conf=0.75)
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Microalgae Bioactives for Functional Food Innovation and Health Promotion
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“Carotenoids such as astaxanthin and β -carotene help neutralise reactive oxygen species (ROS), thereby mitigating oxidative stress and reducing cellular damage associated with ageing and chronic inflammation [20].”
- Authors
- Marques, L., Domingues, M. R., da Costa, E., Abreu, M. H., Lillebø, A. I., & Calado, R.
- Affiliations
- Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (PT)
- CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
- ALGAplus—Production and Trading of Seaweed and Derived Products Lda., 3830-196 Ílhavo, Portugal
- Corresponding author
- Marques, Luísa
- Calado, Ricardo
- Venue
- Marine Drugs
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2021-08-22
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 469
- ISSN
- 1660-3397 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8400344
- OpenAlex
- W3194170206
- Cited by
- 5
- References
- 67
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2022: 1
- FWCI
- 0.18
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Marine Drugs (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- AquaMMIn - Development and validation of a modular integrated multitrophic aquaculture system for marine and brackish water species (MAR-02.01.01-FEAMP-0038)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Aquatic Science › Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Aquatic Science › Seaweed-derived Bioactive Compounds
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Fatty Acid Research and Health
- Keywords
- fatty acid composition, ascidians, seaweed, Ulva, Fucus, fish farm effluent, n-6/n-3 ratio, polyunsaturated fatty acids, aquaculture feed, integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, coastal lagoons
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Fatty Acids, Fisheries, Fishes, Seaweed, Urochordata, Aquaculture, Aquatic Organisms
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