R A Narayanan1, P Karthick1, NB Shashibhushan1, Cicilia S.B. Kambey2, Nelson Vadassery1, Iain Neish2, Michael Y. Roleda3, Alan Critchley4 and Shrikumar Suryanaranan1
1Sea6 Energy Pvt Ltd., 1st Floor, C-CAMP, NCBS-TIFR, GKVK Post, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560065.
2PT Sea6 Energy Indonesia, Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia.
3Marine Science Institute, University of Philippines, Velasquez St, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines.
4Verschuren Centre for Sustainability in Energy and Environment, Sydney, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada
Eucheumatoid farming has been carried out in massive scale in many tropical oceans for more than 50 years primarily by vegetative propagation. Farmers are facing increasing challenges such as unpredictable growth and disease believed to be caused, in part, by the lack of genetic diversity. Lessons from land crops wherein similar issues have been overcome successfully can effectively guide efforts for successful macroalgal aquaculture.
Curating and understanding existing germplasm under cultivation began with the development of a strain bank housing samples of cultivated eucheumatoids from different locations in Indonesia. ISSR-PCR based DNA fingerprinting was used to investigate genotypic variation among these and other isolates from the Philippines. Besides cross-breeding with wild varieties and enhanced techniques for spore germination and maturation, we are also attempting to generate new varieties by mutagen-treated tissue culture and micro-propagation techniques. To screen these newly generated variants for growth and biomass yield, scaled-down processes (2-100L tanks) of eucheumatoid aquaculture with predictable and consistent growth characteristics repeatable across different laboratories has been developed. The effects of variety of growth-influencing elements using these systems were examined, including water motion, nutrient levels, light, and temperature. Miniature raceway systems were designed to mimick ocean conditions for enhanced sporeling and micropropagule growth.Additionally, we are working on a rapid and reliable method for scaling-up small amounts of biomass to plantation-ready quantities. Finally, our precision ocean farms have the capability of handling multiple varieties and species for monitoring performance and screening for the best varieties, which is key for sustainable eucheumatoid aquaculture.