Prospects of Genetic Transformation Techniques in Culture of Marine Molluscs in India

Overfishing is posing a major problem that has dangerously reduced fish and shellfish stocks. People are, therefore, looking at aquaculture to not only increase the fishery production but to improve the declining stocks. Among all the cultivable species of fish and shellfishes, molluscs such as oysters, mussels and clams form a sizable group that can be cultured successfully along the coast of India. Though the molluscs sustain regular and very productive fisheries in our waters, only a few of the mussels, clams and oysters are now generally eaten. But molluscan diversity has shown a declining trend due to the commercial exploitation, pollution and environment hazards that cause death of molluscs and to a lesser magnitude, the professional shell collection from wild. There is an urgent need to conserve the depleting stocks and to improve the quality of these bivalves. It is necessary, therefore, to develop efficient culture methods to increase the production of clams, oysters and mussels to meet high worldwide demand for these organisms. Genetic manipulation in culture promotes faster growth and maturation, increased disease resistance and triploidy. Some of the techniques are discussed in the current paper.