Abstract : In a global context of marine biological resource overexploitation, a better upgrading of fish and shellfish biomass is a challenge for the 21st century. One of the main and promising issues will be the production of marine bio-ingredients using enzymatic hydrolysis. This paper presents the key steps in the production of enzymatic hydrolysates, such as (i) enzymatic treatment for the bioconversion of solid discards, and more particularly, use of proteases, (ii) quantification of the proteolysis extend and procedures of quality-control and (iii) identification of biological activity, using in vitro and in vivo methods. In the last part, examples of marine, commercially available functional foods or nutraceutical ingredients carrying bioactive properties are presented in order to demonstrate the interest of biotechnological exploitation of marine resources.
