The Faculty of Veterinary and Animal Sciences of the University of Chile (Favet) was awarded the IDeA 2025 Technological Research Competition with the project “Validation and scaling up of a new formulation of microencapsulated oxytetracycline with high bioavailability: Improving food safety and the sustainability of aquaculture”.

The initiative is led by Dr. Javiera Cornejo, executive director of CASA, full professor, and director of the Veterinary Pharmacology Laboratory (Farmavet) at Favet. Dr. Jurij Wacyk, a CASA researcher, academic, and director of the Animal Nutrition Laboratory at the Faculty of Agronomic Sciences of the University of Chile.

The team, which has already led successful projects at the national and international level, also includes Dr. Carolina Valenzuela, academic and director of the Encapsulation Laboratory of Favet, and Dr. Felipe Oyarzún, academic and director of the Drug Delivery Laboratory of the Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy of the University of Chile.

“We are very motivated by this challenge and convinced that this project will not only have an impact on one of the most relevant economic areas in our country, such as salmon farming, but will also contribute to the global debate on how to move towards more sustainable aquaculture”, said Dr. Javiera Cornejo, project director and executive director of CASA.

The project aims to validate and scale up a new microencapsulated oxytetracycline formulationdesigned to increase the antibiotic's bioavailability in fish and reduce the doses required to achieve therapeutic efficacy. According to Dr. Cornejo, "this represents a concrete advance in the rational use of antimicrobials, animal health, and food safety".

This initiative is a continuation of the Fondef IDeA 2022 project (ID22I10071), where it was demonstrated that the microencapsulated formulation improved the absorption of the antibiotic and significantly reduced the withdrawal period, showing highly promising results for the treatment of Salmon Rickettsial Syndrome (SRS), one of the main causes of antibiotic use in the national industry.

“This new stage presents great challenges, not only in terms of scaling this technology to an industrial level, but also in testing it on fish challenged with the disease, ensuring that its effectiveness is maintained under real farming conditions”, explains Dr. Jurij Wacyk, deputy director of the project, highlighting that the stability and safety of the innovation would be guaranteed throughout the production chain.

The project will generate new knowledge in the optimization of pharmaceuticals in aquaculturethrough innovative controlled-release systems; fish pharmacology through pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies; and the responsible use of antibiotics, with an impact on reducing residues in edible tissues and improving animal health. It will also promote technology transfer, providing capabilities that could be applied to other medications and farmed species.

The IDeA 2025 Technological Research Competition of the National Research and Development Agency (ANID) seeks to support the funding of initiatives that generate high-impact innovations, aimed at developing transferable and marketable solutions. This particular project will run for two years and has secured funding exceeding 230 million pesos.

The companies Salmones Antártica and Virbac-Centrovetare participating as associated entities in this initiative, and the collaborator is the Salmon Technological Institute (INTESAL).