Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles in Fish Feed for Intestinal Health

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Current fish feed additives, such as zinc sulphate, are effective but fail to comprehensively improve multiple aspects of fish health, including intestinal health and metabolism, necessitating the development of alternative additives that can enhance intestinal microbiota, structure, and metabolic regulation.

Innovation Solution

A method involving the use of zinc oxide nanoparticles (nZnO) in fish feed, with concentrations of 60-93.35 mg/kg, which promotes probiotic colonization, accelerates goblet cell renewal, and regulates glucose and lipid metabolism, while maintaining the feed free of zinc sulphate, and ensuring optimal water and salinity conditions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If zinc sulphate is used as a fish feed additive, then some aspects of fish health are improved, but comprehensive improvement of multiple health aspects including intestinal health and metabolism is not achieved

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefish health improvementVSAvoidcomprehensive health improvement capability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the chemical form of zinc from zinc sulphate to zinc oxide nanoparticles, and further optimizes the particle size parameter to 10-45 nm. This parameter change transforms the additive's properties, enabling it to simultaneously improve intestinal microbiota composition, intestinal structure, and metabolic regulation, thereby achieving comprehensive health improvement that zinc sulphate could not provide

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses zinc oxide nanoparticles as a composite material that combines the benefits of zinc supplementation with nanoparticle technology. This composite approach allows the additive to function multiple roles: providing essential zinc nutrition, modulating intestinal microbiota, improving intestinal structure, and regulating metabolism, thus resolving the limitation of zinc sulphate's single-function approach

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

2Productivity

If high doses of zinc oxide nanoparticles are used to maximize health benefits, then growth-promoting effects are enhanced, but toxicity risks increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvegrowth-promoting effectVSAvoidtoxicity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent precisely controls the zinc oxide nanoparticle dosage parameter within the range of 60-93.35 mg/kg, with optimal performance at 74.68-93.35 mg/kg. This parameter optimization ensures sufficient zinc delivery for growth promotion while maintaining safety margins below toxic thresholds, resolving the contradiction between maximizing benefits and minimizing harm

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent establishes a feedback mechanism by monitoring fish health parameters, growth performance, and toxicity indicators to determine the optimal zinc oxide nanoparticle dosage. This feedback approach allows adjustment of the dosage parameter to achieve maximum growth-promoting effects while preventing toxicity, transforming a static dosage problem into a dynamically optimized solution

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS20240415152A1Methods for improving health of fish, use of zinc oxide particles for the preparation of fish feed, methods for preparing fish feed for fish, and fish feed thereof

Publication Date: 2024.12.19 CITY UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

AI summary

The present invention is concerned with a method of improving health of fish. The method has a step of feeding the fish with a fish feed, wherein the fish feed in its dried state has 60-93.35 mg/kg of zinc oxide (ZnO) particles.