During two trials in the fall of 2009, milt from 25 males was cryopreserved using two established methods as well as the new Cryogenetics protocol. In total more than 20.000 eggs were fertilized using frozen-thawed milt. The Cryogenetics method achieved an average fertilization rate of 94 % - significantly better than the other methods. These are by far the best results ever reported for cryopreserved coho milt, and is comparable to using fresh milt.
Cryopreservation in aquaculture and conservation
Cryopreservation technology is expected to revolutionize how breeding companies and conservation authorities store and manage genetic material. Today conservation efforts, if any, are managed by catching and breeding individuals from indigenous fish populations at each river site. This strategy is costly, limited in capacity (which in itself limits genetic diversity) and extremely vulnerable to disease and environmental pollutants. "Cold" storage on the other hand offers safe, cost efficient storage of practically unlimited capacity (and genetic diversity) for all eternity.
Other Pacific salmonids next
The research collaboration continues in 2010, and will focus on establishing similar protocols for milt from chinook (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and sockeye (Oncorhynchus nerka) salmon.
Cryogenetics AS specializes in developing technologies for cryopreservation of milt and fertilized embryos, and provides commercial products on milt from Atlantic Salmon, rainbow trout and Atlantic cod. The company issued a press release in January 2010 informing of its breakthrough of successfully cryopreserving a cod embryo down to - 130 degrees C (-202 degrees F).
TRI-GEN Fish Impovement Ltd. specializes in research, consultancy, development and management of coho, chinook and Atlantic salmon as well as rainbow trout broodstock programs throughout the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada regions.
The project has been financed in part by Innovation Norway.
For further information please contact:
Jorn Ulheim, Managing Director
Cryogenetics AS
Phone: +47 95 72 32 93
E-mail: jorn.ulheim@cryogenetics.no,
Bruce Swift, Managing Director
TRI-GEN Fish Improvement Ltd.
Phone: +1 604 795 6852
E-mail: bruce.swift@shaw.ca
For more information, see www.cryogenetics.no