ISSUE FOCUS 24 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE May 2022 in training Thoroughbred horses.10 Markers of exercise-induces muscle damage (serum creatine kinase[CK] activity) and muscle fatigue (lactate dehydrogenase-5, LDH-5) were significantly lower in the supplemented group of horses. Exertional rhabdomyolysis (tying-up syndrome) is one of the most common muscle disorders occurring in horses either during or immediately after exercising. The clinical signs of this disease are variable, ranging from slight stiffness to immobility, signs of pain, and reluctance to move. These can limit and inhibit the performance of the horse.10 So, it is crucial to prevent or at least ameliorate the burden through safe dietary and non-invasive interventions such as natural astaxanthin supplementation. Natural astaxanthin supplementation in dogs11 and cats12 could also enhance immune defense and improve immune response. Moreover, astaxanthin supplementation has been associated with improved fertility13,14, and better growth performance15 in livestock, as well as optimum reproduction, growth, survival and immunocompetence in aquaculture.16,17,18 CURRENT MICROALGAE PRODUCTION AND FUTURE POTENTIAL Microalgae production volume globally, and in Europe are estimated to be around 30 206, and 182 tons of dry weight per year, respectively. Food supplements and nutraceuticals (24%), cosmetics (24%), and feed (19%) are the main applications of microalgae biomass, contributing together to 67% of the total use.19,20 The scale of microalgal cultivation is currently not big enough to fully substitute the conventional livestock, and animal feed. Therefore, the focus is on the use of microalgae products as food supplements, to improve and maintain the health of variety of animals. The market for algae-based animal feed and ingredients is set to grow rapidly as the techno economic analyses have shown good potential for scaleup and cost reduction of microalgae cultivation. Microalgae are cultivated by different production methods, such as open pond raceway systems and photobioreactors (PBR). The latter is the most commonly used method in Europe. The disadvantages of open cultivation systems are the increased
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTUxNjkxNQ==