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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Leetown, West Virginia » Cool and Cold Water Aquaculture Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #173162
Title: EVALUATION OF FAMILY GROWTH RESPONSE TO FISH MEAL AND GLUTEN-BASED DIETS IN RAINBOW TROUT (ONCORHYNCHUS MYKISS)

Author
item Palti, Yniv
item Silverstein, Jeffrey
item WIEMAN, HEATHER - DEPT. OF PHARMACOLOGY AND
item Phillips, John
item BARROWS, FREDERIC - USDA, ARS, HAGERMAN FISH
item PARSONS, JAMES - TROUT LODGE, INC

Submitted to: Aquaculture
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/24/2005
Publication Date: 11/25/2005
Citation: Palti, Y., Silverstein, J., Wieman, H., Phillips, J.G., Barrows, F.T., Parsons, J. 2005. Evaluation of family growth response to fish meal and gluten-based diets in rainbow trout (oncorhynchus mykiss). Aquaculture. 255 (1-4):548-556.

Interpretive Summary: Growth in farmed rainbow trout can depend on heritable traits that dictate how fish respond to particular diets. Farmers need more information on identifying growth traits using DNA marker analysis, enabling them to select fish with desirable growth characteristics. Success in this project will define appropriate selection methods for improving growth in rainbow trout using plant based diets, ascertain the effectiveness of microsatellite DNA marker analysis for pedigree assignment in a commercial aquaculture setting, and establish the groundwork for marker-assisted selection programs for these traits in rainbow trout.

Technical Abstract: Microsatellite DNA markers were used to determine the pedigree of the top 1% and of the bottom 1% of progeny in a large scale commercial growth trial of 24,000 rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)from 20 full-sib families (20 dams x 10 sires in a nested mating design). The progeny were pooled at eyed stage and divided into 2 groups. Half of the fish from each family were fed a standard fishmeal-based diet and the other half were fed a plant protein based diet to determine the relative family rankings in each case and calculate genotype by feed interactions. Large genetic variation for growth was identified for both diets and the sire effect was found to be highly significant. The family rankings were very similar for both diets, which suggest that the fish that grow faster on fishmeal diet are likely to grow faster on plant-based diets, and therefore current commercial strains that exhibit superior growth should retain their improved performance if raised on plant-based diets. Additionally, we determined that although microsatellites can be used for accurate parentage assignment in a large scale selection program, a more rapid, universal and cost-effective procedure should be developed.