The European project, AquaCell, will develop intestinal cell lines for European seabass and Atlantic salmon to test new products and determine their potential to be included in feeds, reducing the number of fish used in animal trials. AquaCell intends to provide an innovative tool to the scientific community that will contribute to the sustainability of the aquaculture sector.

CIIMAR and Nord University are partners in this project that aims to develop novel strategies to improve fish robustness, thereby reducing the need for antibiotics, while simultaneously increasing commercial production efficiency and aquaculture sector sustainability. The tool also intends to reduce the animal use and associated costs required for in vivo experiments, by taking advantage of the in vitro intestinal cell lines. 

The results obtained herein will provide the knowledge for future applications to research programs and funding bodies essential to pursue the research line. The in vitro cell line model will be used as an effective tool to predict fish health and can be applied by the aquaculture industry, contributing to the sustainability of the sector.