PhD Scholarships sponsored by SOJA DE PORTUGAL
SOJA DE PORTUGAL is sponsoring PhD Scholarships for SANFEED students - Doctoral Programme in Sustainable Animal Nutrition and Feeding, with global support of upwards of 45,000 Euros. One of the students is developing the thesis "Enhancing the Health and Growth of Sea Bream (Sparus aurata) Through Nutritional Supplementation: Discovering New Nutraceutical Compounds in Marine Biorefineries” (Potenciar a saúde e crescimento da dourada [Sparus aurata] através da suplementação nutricional: à descoberta de novos compostos nutracêuticos de biorefinarias marinhas), which seeks to explore the potential of new nutritional supplements (such as polyphenols, prebiotics or antimicrobial peptides) in improving the nutritional condition, antioxidant capabilities, immune response mechanisms and resistance to disease of marine fish. This project will focus on sea bream, one of the main species cultivated in the Mediterranean, and the results will allow commercial diets to be developed with formulas based on scientific knowledge, which will result in improved growth and less susceptibility to diseases.
Partners: CIIMAR, ICNAS-UP, REQUIMTE, Sparos | Duration: 2017 to 2020
Another project also sponsored by SOJA DE PORTUGAL focuses on the topic "The Microbiome of Poultry: The Influence of Nutritional Factors" (Microbioma de aves: influência de fatores nutricionais). The Gastrointestinal Tract (GIT) is a dynamic ecosystem containing a complex microbial community: the microbiome. Poultry's GIT has contact with external bacterial immediately after hatching, and is colonized by diverse species of beneficial bacteria, mostly anaerobic. Diet influences the GIT microbiome and can be developed so as to enhance the bird's growth, in addition to reducing its risk of enteric diseases. The microbiome can influence the intestine's morphology and, consequently, its assimilation of nutrients. Therefore, this project will describe poultry's microbiome, using the most modern genomic tools. Moreover, it will evaluate the way the diet composition (including supplements with the potential to shape the microbiome) affects the nutrients in the intestine that are available for the microorganisms and, therefore, how these affect the microbial populations and their balance in birds of different ages. This makes it possible to define a feeding strategy that allows for poultry's improved zootechnical performance and a reduction in the incidence of disease.
Partners: CIIMAR, FCUP, ICBAS-UP, UTAD | Duration: 2017 to 2020
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