Proteomic advances in seafood and aquaculture

Aquaculture and fishery sectors have experienced enormous growth, due to increasing fish consumption all over the world. However, infectious diseases caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi, or parasites are the major causes of huge economical losses in those industries. Moreover, husbandry practices and environmental factors are origins of fish vulnerability leading to bad physiological conditions and diseases. High-throughput technologies like proteomics have a significant role in understanding physiology, as well as pathological conditions. The characterization of host–pathogen interactions will help to diagnose, control, prevent, and treat diseases in aquatic species. The proteomics comprehensive approach is unutterably helpful to promote sustainability in fish farming, by describing the host’s defense mechanisms and virulence-related proteins of pathogens. In this review, we focus and present some of the recent proteomic techniques applied to the characterization of the physiology of aquatic organisms and their pathogens, as well as exploring those pathogens’ virulence and the host’s immune response mechanisms, not only against biotic stressors but also abiotic hazards. The use of proteomics in food authentication will also be described.