Amino acid profiles of meagre (Argyrosomus regius) larvae: Towards the formulation of an amino acid balanced diet

The main aim of this work was to obtain an estimation of the amino acid profile of meagre larvae. In addition, a comparison of larval amino acid profile and diet was done to identify potential deficiencies. There are no available data on AA requirements of meagre larvae and the diets used for larval rearing are those used in seabream rearing. Meagre and seabream larvae have a very different growth pattern and, according to our experience the former has a considerably higher demand of protein. Meagre and seabream have distinct AA profiles too (as observed in this study). Given that meagre is the species with the highest potential to be intensively farmed in the Mediterranean region it is important to formulate specific diets for this species. The results obtained in this work could be the basis for the formulation of amino acid balanced diets.