The Marine and Freshwater Institute is conducting experiments to breed a new kind of farmed salmon without any sex, in order to avoid possible cross-breeding of farmed salmon with wild specimens.
The project is being undertaken in collaboration with StofnFiskur, an organization involved in aquaculture breeding and genetics, and the University of Maryland, which holds the copyright on the process, reported Iceland Review.
If this experiment is successful, the result would also be applied to farmed Arctic char populations, as 15/20 percent of them reaches sexual maturity before they are harvested.
“This is what’s called gene suppression; there are certain substances that we use on roe and once we do, certain genes that can determine what sex a fish is don’t get expressed. And thus are the fish sexles,” explained Ragnar Jóhannsson, the Institute’s Director of Aquaculture.
This process is not considered genetic modification, since the fish’s genetic makeup isn’t touched. Rather, the expression of MRNA, which controls the production of proteins that are connected to sexual maturation. This is done by introducing substrates into cells.
Ragnar believes the method is more promising than experiments with tri-chromosome triploid fish, as it involves less intervention.
“What seems to have been the biggest problems with the tri-chromosome fish is that there have been more deformations and death and that seems to be because they can’t tolerate temperatures that are high or too low as well. And we have more than enough low temperatures here in Iceland,” he explained.
The project is still in the testing phase and conclusions are expected in three years.