Biotech firm addresses taurine deficiency in farmed fish
November 1, 2017
By Liza Mayer
Massachusetts-based biotech company KnipBio says it has succeeded in developing a microorganism capable of providing taurine missing from many commercial fish feeds.
KnioBio uses biotechnology to advance the development of fish-feed alternatives The company is known for its efforts to develop fish feed derived from microbes instead of less-sustainable sources such as wild-caught fish or agricultural crops.
KnipBio said it was able to develop a microbial strain capable of producing taurine in meaningful amounts.
Taurine is a sulfonic amino-acid critical to basic cellular and physiological processes such as membrane stabilization, detoxification, anti-inflammation, immunomodulation, and anti-oxidation.
The reduced availability in aquaculture diets of taurine-rich ingredients like fishmeal may create a taurine deficiency. This deficiency can lead to reduced growth and survival for many commercially relevant finfish species, increasing their susceptibility to diseases and impairing larval development, said the company.
