[Research Line]

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  BIOLOGY, AQUACULTURE AND SEAFOOD QUALITY

  Promote aquaculture sustainability under a changing climate and develop innovative methods to increase food extraction from the oceans are central approaches to tackle societal challenges related to human nutrition and seafood quality. For these, it is critical to comprehend central aspects related to the morphological and physiological diversity of aquatic species of economic interest or key to food webs, including their environmental and nutritional requirements, mechanisms of adaptation and susceptibility to diseases. High impact scientific knowledge and innovation in supporting areas are provided through basic and applied research and transferred to the industry and end-users.

  
  

  

  Principal Investigator:
  Luísa Valente

  [Research Groups]

  • ANIMAL NUTRITION AND HEALTH

    

    Principal Investigator:
    Aires Oliva Teles

    This group develops fundamental and applied research on nutrition, immunobiology, and pathology of aquatic organisms, mainly of fish species established for marine aquaculture, but also of marine invertebrates.
    The group aims at studying aquatic animals' nutrient requirements and utilization, and the use of alternative ingredients for aquaculture, as well as their effects on innate immune system and disease resistance. Fish diseases, their histopathology effects, and the potential of functional ingredients to reduce disease susceptibility and the use of antibiotics in aquaculture is another research interest. Overall, the aim of our research is to improve animal performance, aquafeeds quality and economic value, safety and quality of the final product, and improvement of fish health and well-being.

    
    [Research Teams]

    • Animal Health and Aquaculture
      PI: Benjamin Costas Refojos
    • Animal Pathology
      PI: Maria João Santos
    • Nutrition and Immunobiology
      PI: Aires Oliva Teles

  • ANIMAL PHYSIOLOGY AND FUNCTIONAL GENOMICS

    

    Principal Investigator:
    Eduardo Rocha

    This group develops fundamental and applied research on the biology of aquatic species of economic interest and on the recognition of the imbalances and diseases affecting wild and aquaculture produced species, based on a wide plethora of technics, from genes to population levels. The current major scientific challenges addressed cover: (i) elucidation and comprehension of the evolution of complex traits and gene networks in Metazoans and their impact on animal physiology; (ii) molecular physiological mechanisms of adaptation in fishes across evolutionary and life history time scales; (iv) effects and mechanisms of metabolic (lipidic), reproductive and endocrine disorders of fishes and invertebrates that, when interacting with abiotic and biotic environmental factors, impact their growth, fitness, and population sustainability; (v) use of esclerochronological and geochemical proprieties of otoliths and genetics to study the population structure, stock delineation, migratory patterns and habitats connectivity of fishes; and (vi) water quality, looking for the presence of substances that cause disorders in wild or cultured species, and therefore impacts on environmental and human health, and production efficiency, respectively.

    
    [Research Teams]

    • Animal Genetics and Evolution
      PI: Filipe Castro
    • Ecophysiology
      PI: Alberto Correia
    • Histomorphology, Physiopathology and Applied Toxicology
      PI: Eduardo Rocha

  • AQUACULTURE AND SEAFOOD SAFETY

    

    Principal Investigator:
    Maria Leonor Nunes

    The central purpose of this group is to contribute for the availability of sustainable safe seafood from aquaculture, having the highest quality and nutritional value, across a wide range of products adapted to consumer preferences and lifestyles. The capacity for progress must be strengthened within the aquaculture value chain, and under a circular economy concept, linking suppliers to the production, and processing actors to the final consumer. For such progress, this group, encompassing researchers in different fields, is prepared to deliver impacting scientific knowledge and innovation through basic and applied research and to support its transference to the main stakeholders.

    
    [Research Teams]

    • Nutrition, Growth and Quality of Fish
      PI: Luísa Valente
    • Safe and Healthy Seafood and Sustainable Consumption
      PI: Maria Leonor Nunes