Plant & Animal Genomes XI Conference Plant & Animal Genomes XI ConferenceJanuary 11-15, 2003
Town & Country Convention Center
San Diego, CA
Workshop: Aquaculture
The primary goal of Hyacinth Genomics, LLC, is to provide gene sequence-based oligonucleotides, oligonucleotide microarrays, and microarray services to the shrimp aquaculture community in order to develop a better shrimp. The oligonucleotide libraries will be available as arrayed DNAs in microtiter plates and as printed arrayed DNAs on microscope slides for full microarray services. Using the expanding Penaeus spp. sequence database, the latest advances in bioinformatics will be applied to the oligonucleotide sequence design to maximize specificity and sensitivity. The oligonucleotides will be designed from the sequences of approximately 20,000 clones from cDNAs libraries of P. vannamei and P. monodon made available by Dr. A. Alcivar-Warren, Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine, MA. The proposed oligonucleotide microarray platform eliminates the need for cloning and PCR, allows hybridization parameters to be dictated, permits mRNA splice variants to be detected, and offers increased quality and lower costs for the researcher. Data are shown from human, mouse, and rat microarrays we carried out using a platform identical to that proposed for the shrimp microarrays. Shrimp gene expression profiles could be used in the identification of genes that are important in shrimp farming, e.g., virus immunity, nutritional requirements, and growth rates. Target gene identification is often the first step in the design of strategies for efficient hybrid breeding, drug treatments, vaccines, and gene therapy. The proposed work will demonstrate that microarray technology is a very useful tool as a means to study many of the pressing issues regarding shrimp and other aquaculture species.