Genetic enhancement sought for farmed turbot

A team of researchers from the Institute of Aquaculture at the University of Santiago (USC) are working on carrying out genetic and sanitary improvements in turbot (Psetta maxima) aimed at curbing high mortality of the fish in Galician marine farms.

Funded by the Xunta de Galicia, the initiative is coordinated by the Genetics Group for Aquaculture at the College of Veterinary Medicine of Lugo and the Department of Microbiology at the University of Vigo.

Experts are trying to develop "more effective" vaccines than those available on the market.

"[The goal is] to improve turbot productivity, as it is the most important farmed fish species in Galicia from an economic point of view," stated Manuel Lemos Ramos, professor of USC's Pathology group in Aquaculture.

Researchers link the high incidence of mortality with "major losses" for the aquaculture sector.

After signing an accord with the Galician Aquaculture Cluster, the team now has turbot and salmon of various fish farms available for the study of the harmful Aeromonas salmonicida bacterium.

"Other diseases in aquaculture are already under stricter control whereas others, as in this case, are more difficult to treat and, above all, to prevent," Lemos Ramos said.

The study has been carried out in a bid to determine which genes are activated in specimens when it is infected by a bacterium and which are pronounced in the microorganism when it infects the fish, El Progreso reports.

After identifying the genes that take part in the infection process and favour the bacterium infecting the fish, experts hope to secure a turbot stock more resistant to certain diseases.

Meanwhile, the entries of turbot in week 11 fell 31 per cent after entries in week 10 increased a whopping 152 per cent, official numbers indicate.

If the two weeks are assessed together, the entries were highest this year, and one of most voluminous of last year.

Turbot mainly hail from two places: Pontevedra, which provides 76 per cent of the total, and A Corunna, with 15 per cent.

Finally, 2,908 tonnes of turbot were exported between January and December 2008, whereas 2,486 tonnes in export sales were sold in 2007, the Customs Directorate General indicated.