Published in the Journal of Functional Foods, the new study investigated the effects of 12 weeks supplementation with Aker BioMarine's Superba Krill Powder on the hepatic gene expression of mice.
The team behind the study reported that supplementation of the powder - which contains a mixture of oil and protein from Antarctic krill modified the pathways of several metabolic processes - showing that glucose metabolism and the degradation of lipids and amino acids were down-regulated while energy metabolism was up-regulated.
Led by Dr Bodil Bjørndal from the University of Bergen, Norway, the team suggested that dietary supplementation with the krill-based formulation may have the potential to prevent age-related declines in weight and energy due to the preservation of amino acids in combination with increased energy production.
"The findings of this study support further investigation into whether a lipid and protein combination product can have additional benefits over omega-3 supplementation alone; in particular, if a krill powder diet vs. a krill oil diet has an added effect on pathways involved in protein metabolism," said Bjørndal.