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"Ehime University's Fisheries Research Center Advances Genetic Enhancement of Eastern Little Tuna for Aquaculture"
In Ainan, Japan, Ehime University's Fisheries Research Center made waves by introducing farmed eastern little tuna to the market at the 2020 Seafood Show Osaka. This species, previously sourced solely from wild capture fisheries, demonstrated favorable qualities for aquaculture, including early maturity, manageable size, and a taste akin to bluefin tuna.
Professor Takahiro Matsubara, speaking to Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF), highlighted the advantages of eastern little tuna over bluefin tuna in aquaculture due to its smaller size and faster growth rate. This made it suitable for farming in pens similar in size to those used for yellowtail and sea bream, a contrast to the larger pens required for bluefin tuna.
Ehime University's fish farms, mainly consisting of small to medium-sized operations, prioritized minimizing initial capital investments for new species. Leveraging their innovative next-generation breeding system, the university induced early spawning, conducted genetic analysis to enhance taste, and cryopreserved high-quality stem cells. These methods facilitated the rapid development of consistently superior strains and enabled the preservation of genetics from deceased high-quality fish, a feat previously unattainable.
Instructor Daiki Saito emphasized the significance of overcoming the challenge of producing seedlings from deceased individuals, which was previously impossible. With the successful implementation of these advancements, Ehime University anticipates applying their next-generation system to expedite the production of high-quality results across other species, surpassing the efficacy of traditional selective breeding methods.
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