New Developments in Marine Biotechnology

330 Pages·1998·12.259 MB·English

by  Arthur Kornberg (auth.), Y. Le Gal, H. O. Halvorson (eds.)

New Developments in
Marine Biotechnology
New Developments in
Marine Biotechnology
Edited by
Y. LeGal
National Museum of Natural History and
College of France
Concarneau, France
and
H. 0. Halvorson
University of Massachusetts
Boston, Massachusetts
With the editorial assistance of
Anne-Marie Lambert
Springer Science+ Business Media, LLC
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
New developments 1n mar1ne biotechnology ' ed1ted by Y. LeGal and
H.O. Halvorson.
p. em.
"Proceedings of the 4th International Mar1ne B1otechnology
Conference. held September 22-29. 1997, 1n Sorrento. Paestum,
Oranto, and Pugnochtuso. Italy''--T.p. verso.
Includes bib11ographical references anc. 1ndex.
ISBN 978-1-4419-3300-3 ISBN 978-1-4757-5983-9 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4757-5983-9
1. Marin~ flshes--Molecular aspects--Congresses. 2. Mar1ne
biotechnology--Congresses. 3. Fishery resources--Management
-Congresses. I. LeGal, Yves. II. Halvorson. Harlyn D.
III. Internat1onal Marine Biotechnology Conference 14th 1997
Sorrento, Italy, etc.)
OL620.N49 1998
572.8'1177--dc21 98-24800
CIP
Proceedings of the 4th International Marine Biotechnology Conference,
held September 22-29, 1997, in Sorrento, Paestum, Otranto, and Pugnochiuso, Italy
ISBN 978-1-4419-3300-3
© 1998 Springer Science+ Business Media New York
Originally published by Plenum Press, New York in 1998
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1998
http://www.plenum.com
10987654321
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form
or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise,
without written permission from the Publisher
PREFACE
Past efforts to colonize the environment and domesticate living species, coupled
with scientific research, have resulted in the possession (but not always the real control)
by humans of any available terrestrial space. However, oceans, which represent up to two
thirds of the surface of the planet, had not been really approached until the middle of this
century. As oceanographic science develops, the picture of a rich, diverse, complex and
also, in many respects, specific marine life, is coming into view.
In a broad sense, marine biotechnologies can be understood as the various means or
techniques of managing marine living systems for the benefit of mankind. The first goal
we have is for marine life to provide biomass for food. However, today it is not certain
that a significant increase of total world fisheries' catches will be possible in the future.
There are several ways to address this. First, we need to generate better, more complete, or
different uses of the biomass actually fished. This is mainly a matter of upgrading fish and
fish wastes. Second, we need to artificially grow the living species. This falls within the
scope of cell cultivation and of aquaculture. Both approaches have to be appreciated si
multaneously in terms of biology, ecology, and economy. In both approaches, profit
improvements are linked to the introduction of biotechnological methods and to the use of
biotechnological processes.
The main characteristics of fished biomasses is that they still exist and are readily
available. They can be considered a huge reservoir of molecules: polysaccharides, en
zymes, fats, etc., exhibiting physical, chemical, or biological activities of interest for vari
ous purposes. The main problem (and it is not a minor one), in terms of techniques and
cost, is to isolate and purify these molecules. The second issue in biomass treatment is
mass cultivation of marine organisms. It is now clear that trying to reproduce biomass in
tensively and artificially cannot easily yield profits, unless we use a series of biotech
nological tricks that will permit a drastic lowering of the costs. During the last l 0 years,
another important problem has emerged. This is the spreading of pathogenic organisms in
overcrowded sea farms. Within a short period of time, sea farms could be almost com
pletly destroyed by marine viruses, microorganisms, or parasites about which we have lit
tle information.
Solutions to these problems represent real strategic tasks for the marine biotechnolo
gists requiring basic research in developmental biology, genetics, gene enginering, endo
crinology, pathology, and immunology of species as different as flatfish, salmon, shrimps,
abalone, among others.
Biodiversity is largely a reflection of the very specific aspects of marine life. An
early trend consisted of limiting the scope of marine biotechnologies to the production of
v
vi Preface
biological models that facilitate the study of general mechanisms. These studies feed our
knowledge and understanding of life that is built on an unique pattern. In contrast, they
also favor the exploitation of structural, developmental, and biochemical specificities.
Marine biotechnologies reveal their genuine potential in offering the investigation and ex
ploitation of molecules and mechanisms for which we do not know of any terrestrial coun
terparts. Marine biotechnology is by nature multidisciplinary and clearly incorporates new
technologies from molecular biology and chemical analysis to bioreactor technology.
Marine biotechnologies also deal with environmental management. The first step in
any kind of management involves a diagnosis of the condition of a systems. The past dec
ade has been marked by considerable progress in using rapid and sensitive methods for
estimating biological responses to human-induced changes in the environment. Many of
these methods now use molecular probes, nucleic acids, immunoreagents, or enzymatic
biosensors that allow us to record efficiently a considerable number of data. A main prob
lem is how to handle this huge quantity of information, to use it, and to forecast the evolu
tionary trends of an estuary, a bay, a sea, or an ocean.
Finally, one of the most promising goals for marine biotechnologies will be the pos
sibility of using sophisticated biological tools for managing marine ecosystems. Control
ling natural production of useful species will be less costly than trying to rear completely
demanding species. Understanding the tenuousness of the relationship between planktonic
species and their environment will perhaps give us an insight on climatic changes and on
the biological future of the planet.
The domains covered by marine biotechnologies are vast and range over various
overlapping disciplines, from the molecular approaches of developmental biology and bio
diversity to the chemistry of natural substances. New fields are rapidly evolving and are
helping to successively emphasize specific areas of biological sciences.
With its biphasic unfolding, the format of the fourth edition of International Marine
Biotechnology Conference (IMBC'97) was original and successful, as it enabled the pres
entation of straightforward reports and constructive discussions.
With more than sixty selected papers organized in eight sections, this book covers
the present state of the art in marine biotechnologies.
HHand YLG
TRIBUTE TO NINO SALVATORE
The International Marine Biotechnology Conferences represent an assembly of inter
disciplinary scientists and technologists with a common interest in Marine Science. Nino
Salvatore was one of these. He joined the IOC to plan for IMBC'94 in Tromsoe, Norway
and quickly demonstrated that he was one of those rare individuals in the scientific commu
nity who made an almost instantaneous impression on any person fortunate enough to be
acquainted with him. His high standards and enthusiasm were widely felt-from the revital
izing of the Stazione Zoologica in Naples, to science policy in the EU, to support for
biotechnology, developmental biology, and molecular biology. Prof. Salvatore was a strong
enthusiast for basic research and its application to solving problems of the day.
During the IMBC'94 meeting, the lack of an European organization to deal with in
ternational and European collaboration became evident. Characteristically, Nino Salvatore
saw the need to establish such an organization. He organized an ad hoc meeting and a
decision was made to go ahead. The European Society for Marine Biotechnology was
formed, and its first President, Dr. Jan Olafsen, is a member of IOC and was our host in
Tromsoe for 1MBC'94.
When the decision was made to hold IMBC'97 in Italy, Dr. Salvatore applied his en
ergy and enthusiam to its organization, financial support, and his wish to do something
different. An international program committee, chaired by Dr. Frank Gannon, developed a
program based on peer review of submitted abstracts. The mobility of the meeting is an
expression of Nino Salvatore's desire to have as many people and scenarios involved as
possible because of the diverse subject areas that need to be covered in biotechnology. If
people cannot come to the conference, the conference will visit them. He also had in mind
to permit as many of his countrymen to participate as possible while at the same time
broadening the picture of the scope of this interdisciplinary subject area in Italy in the
minds of foreign conference participants.
Science has lost a visionary person with a remarkable character. Individuals do make
a difference and Prof. Salvatore. He will be missed. The IMBC'97 is dedicated to him. We
seek your help in making this meeting a success and thereby honoring Gaetano Salvatore.
Harlyn 0. Halvorson
vii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
High Patronage of the President of the Italian Republic
Under the aegis of the European Union
Under the auspices of
Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri
Ministero dell 'Universita e Della Ric ere a Scientifica e Tecnologica
Ministero dei Beni Culturali e Ambientali
Consiglio nazionale delle Ricerche
Regione Campania
Regione Puglia
Amministrazione Provinciale di Napoli
Amministrazione Provinciale di Salerno
Amministrazione Provinciale di Foggia
Comune di Sorrento
Comune di Capaccio/Paestum
Comune di Otranto
Universita degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Seconda Universita di Napoli
Universita degli Studi di Leece
Unione degli Industriali della Provincia di Napoli
With the support of
American Society for Microbiology
Biotechnology Center of Excellence Corp, USA
Department of Energy, USA
Massachusetts Foundation for Excellence in Marine and Polymer Science
National Science Foundation, USA
National Institutes of Health, USA
Office of Ocean and Atmospheric Research
Policy Center for Marine Biosciences and Technology, USA
Society for Industrial Microbiology, USA
United States Department of Agriculture
ix
X Acknowledgments
With the contribution of'
Camera di Commercio Industria Artigianato E Agricoltura, Leece
Camera di Commercio Industria Artigianato E Agricoltura, Foggia
Ente Provinciale per il Turismo, Leece
CONTENTS
I. Biotechnology: Biology or Technology? Keynote Lecture
Arthur Kornberg
Section 1: Molecular Biology and Transgenic Animals
2. The Paradox of Growth Acceleration in Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Jose de la Fuente, Isabel Guillen, and Mario P. Estrada
3. Gene Transfer in Zebrafish Enhanced by Nuclear Localization Signals . . . . . . . . II
Philippe Collas and Peter Alestrom
4. Gene Transfer in Red Sea Bream (Pagrosomus major) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Peijun Zhang, Yongli Xu, Zongzhu Liu, Yuan Xiang, Shaojun Du, and
ChoyL. Hew
5. Production of Lines of Growth Enhanced Transgenic Tilapia
(Oreochromis niloticus) Expressing a Novel Piscine Growth
Hormone Gene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Azirur Rahman and Norman Maclean
6. Retention of a Foreign Gene Transferred as a Protamine-DNA Complex by
Electroporated Salmon Sperm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
F. Y. T. Sin, J. G. I. Khoo, U.K. Mukherjee, and I. L. Sin
Section 2: Natural Products and Processes
7. A Novel Antioxidant Derived from Seaweed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
W. C. Dunlap, K. Masaki, Y. Yamamoto, R. M. Larsen, and I. Karube
8. Unusual Marine Sterols May Protect Cellular Membranes against Action of
Some Marine Toxins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Tatiana N. Makarieva, Valentine A. Stonik, Ludmila P. Ponomarenko, and
Dmitry L. Aminin
xi