Breeding and Genomics

What Genes Make Atlantic salmon in Tasmania Enter Puberty? The practise of salmon farming promotes rapid growth in conditions which mean animals may enter maturation at weights below harvest size. When this occurs, the animals can become unsalable due to deterioration in product quality. This created the incentive for our team to explore the genes […]

The Breeding and Genomics group operates a number of breeding programs which seek to select genetically superior animals within a range of species. One of our most important programs focusses on abalone, which in Australia utilises blacklip abalone (Haliotis rubra), greenlip ablone (H laevigata) and their hybrid offspring favoured for their improved growth and production. […]

Transcriptomics for understanding Atlantic salmon biology. The Applied Breeding and Genomics Team group is using transcriptomics to better understand the biology behind economically important traits in Atlantic salmon. Postdoctoral Researcher, Dr Amin Mohamed, recently completed a study that measured gene expression profiles within and between tissues important for a spectrum of life history and production […]

In late 2010, Pacific Oyster Mortality Syndrome (POMS) hit Botany Bay’s Georges River estuary. Within a matter of days, nearly all the area’s cultivated Pacific oysters were dead. Worse was to come. By 2013, POMS had spread to a second NSW estuary – the Hawkesbury River, a prime oyster growing region – where the disease […]

We partnered with Australian prawn farmers to develop a new prawn that is producing record farm yields, leading to increased supplies of top quality, sustainably produced seafood. Our scientists undertook a ten year program of selective breeding in order to develop the prawn now being used by prawn farmers in Australia. Domesticated founder stocks have […]

Atlantic salmon is the highest valued commercial fishery‑related industry in Tasmania, with annual output valued at around $700 million (as of 2016). The majority of Australian salmon farming is located in Tasmania, where waters are among the warmest in the world for Atlantic salmon culture. Warmer temperatures mean that Tasmanian Atlantic salmon can grow to […]