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ARS Home Research Annual Report on Science Accomplishments FY 2021





- Advancing Human Nutrition Research
- Advancing Sustainable Aquaculture Production
- Advancing Sustainable Livestock Production
- Combating AMR
- Combating Citrus Greening
- Controlling Insect Pests
- Developing New Crop Varieties
- Expanding Public Access to Agricultural Information
- Improving Pasture and Rangeland Management
- Improving Rural Economies
- Monitoring and Mitigating Plant Disease
- Optimizing Agricultural Management to Mitigate Climate
- Optimizing Water Use Management
- Protecting Animal Health Disease Detection
- Protecting Human and Animal Health
- Protecting Pollinator Health
- Reducing Labor and Advancing Precision Agriculture
- Safeguarding the Food Supply

**Advancing Sustainable Aquaculture Production** DOWNLOAD TWO-PAGER PDF  **The ARS aquaculture research program delivers new knowledge and technologies that improve domestic aquaculture production efficiency and product quality while minimizing impacts on natural resources.**The following accomplishments in 2021 highlight ARS advances in trout yield,disease prevention, diets, and breeding. **Improved fillet yield and body weight in rainbow trout.**The proportion of edible meat (fillet yield) ona carcass is of major economic importance and breeding animals with superior fillet yield can improveproduction efficiency and profitability. Animals mustbe slaughtered to measure fillet yield directly, so itcannot be measured in breeding animals. However,developing genetic gains for fillet yield is possibleusing information, including genome information,from siblings of fish that are potential breeders. ARSresearchers in Leetown, West Virginia, compared theaccuracy of genetic merit predictions for fillet yieldbetween the family-based selective breeding—whichused information about family relationships—andgenomic selection, which used information aboutfamily relationships and genomic information. Thegenomic selection model increased the accuracy ofgenetic merit predictions for fillet yield by 50 percent,indicating that the use of genomic selection canenhance genetic improvement for the fillet yield traitand further enhance the efficiency and sustainability ofrainbow trout aquaculture. **Sticky fish eggs thwarted by milk.**Hybrid striped bass eggs become extremely sticky after they arefertilized. In a hatchery, this results in the eggs clumping together, which limits availability of oxygenand enables fungal infestations. Both problems can destroy an entire batch of eggs. Fish farmerstypically use tannic acid treatments to prevent egg adhesion, but it is costly and, if left too long, will forma hard layer on the surface, which can prevent embryos from hatching. ARS researchers in Stuttgart,Arkansas, investigated 12 candidate compounds to prevent stickiness and found that 10 percent wholemilk treatment was the most effective strategy. As a result, the largest commercial hybrid striped basshatchery immediately began using milk for their 2020 production; in 2021, the hatchery exclusively usedthe milk to prevent clumping and successfully produced 80.9 million larvae using methods developedby ARS. **Algae oil in fish diets is a viable alternative to fish oil.**Competition for the limited supplies of long-chain, omega 3 fatty acids (“fish oil”) used in the production of farmed fish feeds has created the needto identify alternative sources of long-chain, omega 3 lipids. Vegetable oils have proven to be insufficientin providing the nutritional requirements for normal growth and well-being of marine finfish and do notprovide the heart healthy nutrients valued by U.S. seafood consumers. ARS-funded researchers inFort Pierce, Florida, and their collaborators demonstrated that oils from algae can produce the samelong chain omega 3 fatty acids found in fish oils. These findings provide an alternative lipid source thatwill increase the capacity for raising high-quality marine finfish aquaculture products and meeting thenutritional needs of U.S. seafood consumers. **Breeding Nile tilapia for disease resistance does not affect harvest weight.** Fish growth is economicallyimportant for farmers, so the relationship between growth and other traits that affect performance isparamount. ARS scientists in Auburn, Alabama, and industry stakeholders demonstrated that resistanceto Streptococcus (S.) iniae and S. agalactiae is heritable and used these findings to developed improvedlines of tilapia with increased resistance to these diseases. They examined data from eight generationsof selective tilapia breeding, including data on survival followingS. iniae/S. agalactiaeinfection, and didnot find any significant associations between harvest weight and survival. These findings suggest thatselectively breeding for disease resistance will not reduce tilapia harvest weight, and support using multi-trait selection as a potential strategy to balance growth and disease resistance. Keres, Preston. Auburn University School of Fisheries Associate Professor Dr. William “Bill” Walton rises the floating cages filled with their oyster research at the Shellfish Lab in Dauphin Island, Alabama.2018. USDA Photo.  https://flic.kr/p/MMudpF


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