ARTICLE FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE December 2023 77 tity of nutrients absorbed across the digestive tract. Micronutrients, in the form of nanoparticles incorporated in aquaculture feeds, can penetrate cells more efficiently and raise the absorption rate. INCREASE IN BIOAVAILABILITY BY ENCAPSULATION Nanotechnology has also been employed to improve the bioavailability and increase the retention span of natural bioactive compounds by encapsulating them with nanoparticles. For example, encapsulation of curcumin in nanoparticles has been reported in micelles, liposomes, and hydrogels, among others. ROLE OF NANOPARTICLES IN THE PROPERTIES OF FEED On the other hand, besides improving the stability and bioavailability of food ingredients, nanoparticles can modify the fish food's physical attributes. Even small inclusions of nanomaterials can dramatically enhance the physical properties of food pellets. For example, including single-walled carbon nanotubes in trout diets results in a hard shell that maintains its integrity in the water. This is important to reduce pollution and food wastage in aquaculture systems due to inappropriate buoyancy, poor food stability, or texture of the pellets, which causes significant losses inside this industry. Thus, nano-formulation development has been heavily investigated in the industry. A fundamental characteristic of these systems is their suitability for different uses, such as the delivery of antibiotics, vaccines, pharmaceuticals, and nutraceuticals. Current research has focused on using different types of biopolymers in the aquaculture sector. It was found that vitamin C encapsulated in chitosan-based nanoparticles raised the levels of vitamin C in the serum of rainbow trout (O. mykiss) when incorporated in the feed, also increasing the innate immune response, evidenced by the levels of lysozyme and hemolytic serum complement activities, compared to vitamin C and chitosan control groups. CONCLUSION Nanotechnology offers a range of valuable applications in aquaculture, including stabilizing proteins, DNA, and RNA, delivering small molecules, prolonging drug circulation, and modifying drug transport. These capabilities have practical uses in aquaculture nutrition, fish breeding, drug development, and fish health management. Additionally, nanomaterials can enhance wastewater treatment for safer aquaculture water and discharge. Regarding animal health, developing "nano vaccines" with improved delivery methods for small aquaculture animals like fish larvae and shrimp can be both cost-effective and beneficial for animal welfare. Exploring eco-friendly approaches that align with environmental sustainability is crucial to fully harnessing nano-delivery potential in aquaculture drugs and nutraceuticals. References are available upon request. About Thangaraju Thiruvasagam Thangaraju Thiruvasagam, Ph.D. is a research scholar in the Department of Fish Nutrition and Feed Technology at Institute of Fisheries Post Graduate Studies of Tamil Nadu Dr. J. Jayalalithaa Fisheries University (TNJFU), India. Thiruvasagam has done the research on shrimp nutrition (Penaeus vannamei) with supplementation of nutraceuticals like taurine and cholesterol. About Dr. Amit Ranjan Dr. Amit Ranjan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Fish Nutrition & Feed Technology at the Institute of Fisheries Post Graduate Studies of Tamil Nadu Dr. J. Jayalalithaa Fisheries University (TNJFU), India. His research focus is on fish and shrimp nutrition, where he conducts both strategic and applied research. With his extensive experience in commercial culture of shrimp and freshwater fish, he has published several research papers in international peer-reviewed journals and serves as a reviewer for over 30 international peer-reviewed journals.
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