Development of Microalgae-based novel high added-value products for the Cosmetic and Aquaculture industry (ALGAE4A-B)

ALGAE4A-B was a three-year project funded by EU Horizon 2020, aimed at exploiting the microalgae diversity as a source for state-of-the-art high-added-value biomolecules in aquaculture and cosmetics.

Tangible results: The project developed omics resources for both microalgae and fish, including analytical tools available to all industrial partners through the National Center for Biotechnology Information and other public databases. These involved genomes, transcriptomes, proteomes and metabolomes of microalgae as well as transcriptomes and microbiomes of the highly prized aquaculture fish species sole (Solea senegalensis). The project also examined the effects of novel products on fish larval plasticity and fish immune systems to produce high-quality fry and develop a new range of microalgae products for the aquaculture industry. A novel extract with epigenetic reprogramming effects in sole based on the crude extracts of the microalgae Nannochloropsis gaditana was demonstrated to have potential as an immunostimulant for aquaculture. The project organised a series of training workshops, for which the learning materials are available.

Application/relevance: The project demonstrated the potential that microalgae hold for both cosmeceuticals and fish health. Furthermore, the knowledge transfer and training that took place at multiple levels in ALGAE4A-B strengthened industrial competitiveness in the areas of microalgae production and natural cosmetics.