Description
The Artemia gnotobiotic tool box or GART (Gnotobiotic ARTemia platform) refers to the methodology to hatch and culture Artemia axenically or with a known microflora under strictly controlled environmental parameters.
By eliminating the complex interactions between the microbiological community, the environmental conditions and the target organism, the effect of the presence of a single or of few micro-organisms can be studied.
GART thus allows for a more accurate assessment of the role of microbiota than xenic cultures. It is used to screen a variety of compounds with aquaculture potential, such as pre- and probiotics, feed components and immuno-stimulants. It offers the possibility to verify at high throughput and low cost in vitro findings under in vivo conditions prior to testing on a larger scale with commercial species.
