Metabolomic Insights into Fish Oil Replacement with Other Alternatives: A Mini Review
Keywords:
Aquaculture Nutrition, Metabolomics, Fish oil Replacement, Alternative Lipid Sources, Crude Palm Oil (CPO)Abstract
The rapid growth in the aquaculture sector has resulted in the need to find alternative sources of fish oil (FO), which is rich in LC-PUFAs. Most alternative lipid sources can promote normal growth of fish; however, conventional evaluation methods emphasize performance rather than considering the overall metabolic impact on fish health and product quality. This mini review highlights the use of metabolomics to understand the biological effects of FO replacement in aquafeeds. Metabolomics enables detailed analysis of the effects of dietary lipid substitution on key physiological processes by examining low-molecular-weight metabolites. Major metabolic pathways of β -oxidation, glycolysis, and the oxidative stress-related pathway are altered during lipid substitution. Recent research indicates that the oxidative stress reactions, immune response, and lipid metabolic pathways are species-specific and are changed after FO replacement. This review summarizes metabolomic data on key alternative lipid sources, including vegetable oils, animal fats, microalgal oils, and crude palm oil (CPO). CPO is a promising alternative due to its low cost and bioactive compounds. In addition to being used as substitutes for FO, these substitutes can also modify the fatty acid composition of fillet, antioxidant activity, and immune response differently. However, critical gaps remain, particularly in the application of untargeted metabolomics across species and life stages. Integrating metabolomics with other omics approaches will be essential to develop sustainable aquafeeds and identify biomarkers for long-term fish health.
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