Title : Characterising and modulating microbiota in RAS
Abstract:
Recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) rely on biological filters to fix, sequester and recycle harmful waste products that accumulate throughout a production cycle. These biofilters are communities of microorganisms with assumed metabolic capabilities, typically nitrifying chemotrophs and anaerobic fermenters.
RAS operators rely on biofilters but have little knowledge of their taxonomic composition, their metabolic capacity nor how these fluctuate throughout a production cycle. Currently, biofilter health is measured by proxy, monitoring levels of the compounds they are expected to recycle.
Greater than ninety percent of microorganisms occupying aquatic environments remain unclassified. Monitoring biofilter health by proxy offers reactionary insights. For RAS to succeed, biofilter security systems that directly monitor and selectively modulate microbiota are essential.
Currently, RAS operators only control pH, temperature and salinity. Our long-read metagenomics platform, eForesee, is characterising aquatic microbiomes and offering RAS operators unrivalled insight into the microbiota. With this knowledge, RAS operators can control the microbiota within their systems to support the welfare of their livestock and optimise yields.
Here we show how our eForesee platform taxonomically and metabolically characterises fluctuations in RAS microbiota in response to feed, temperature, salinity, pH and water treatments. We then demonstrate the ability of our Aquabody™ remedies to selectively modulate the microbiota by suppressing the growth of an opportunistic bacterial pathogen. Together, we demonstrate our ability to support RAS by enabling producers to positively modulate the microbiota within their systems for the first time.
