Valorization of Hemp, Shrimp and Blue Crab Co-Products as Novel Culture Media Ingredients to Improve Protein Quality and Antioxidant Capacity of Cultured Meat in Cell-Based Food Applications

TL;DR

This study explores using hemp, shrimp, and blue crab co-products as sustainable ingredients for cultured meat cell growth, showing potential to improve protein quality and antioxidant capacity.

Contribution

The study introduces novel, sustainable culture media ingredients from hemp and marine co-products for cell-based meat production.

Findings

SH and BC hydrolysates supported cell viability similar to FBS at 24 and 48 hours.

SH and BC preserved a more physiological myoblastic morphology compared to FBS.

All hydrolysates significantly enhanced intracellular antioxidant activity compared to FBS.

Abstract

Cultured meat (CM) is a promising alternative to conventional livestock production. However, its scalability is limited by the reliance on fetal bovine serum (FBS) in cell culture media (CCM). This study investigated protein hydrolysates derived from hemp flowers (HFs), hempseeds (HSs), hempseed protein (HP), shrimp (SH), and blue crab (BC) co-products as sustainable CCM supplements. Hydrolysates were produced by Alcalase® enzymatic hydrolysis and tested on C2C12 murine myoblasts proliferation and viability. At the concentration of 11.7 mg/mL, no significant differences in cell viability were observed between hydrolysates and 10% FBS at 24 and 48 h. At 72 h post-treatment, 10% FBS resulted in the greatest increase in cell proliferation, whereas SH and BC treatments preserved a more physiological myoblastic morphology. Intracellular protein accumulation at 72 h in 10% FBS- and SH-treated cells was equal to 24.66 ± 1.37 and 18.79 ± 1.99 µg/mg, respectively, and 5.75 ± 2.32 µg/mg in BC while hemp-derived hydrolysates exhibited limited intracellular protein utilization. All hydrolysates significantly enhanced intracellular antioxidant activity compared with FBS (5.83 ± 1.12 µmol FeSO4/mg). Although further studies are required to assess long-term performance and large-scale applicability, these findings demonstrate the short-term potential of plant- and marine-derived co-products as sustainable CCM supplements, particularly for enhancing the antioxidant profile of cell biomass.

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