Parr - smolt transformation (Cardiff University)

After one to three years of life in freshwater, Atlantic salmon undergo the metamorphic transformation between freshwater dwelling parr and saltwater-adapted smolts. This process, the parr-smolt transformation, represents a programmed adaptation to life in an alternative environment, and as such is of considerable scientific interest. It is also of significance for the salmon farming industry, and for wild salmon conservation and restocking programmes. Although the early life stages occur in freshwater, fish only become table-ready after a period of intensive rearing in seawater. The move from fresh to seawater is a critical stage in salmon farming, which must only be passed when fish have completed the biochemical and physiological changes needed for adaptation to life in a saltwater environment. Smoltification is under endocrine regulation and there is concern that the process may be being adversely affected by endocrine disrupters.
In Cardiff genes differentially expressed in the pituitary gland and kidney during the parr smolt transformation will be identified, these cDNAs will be added to the salmon cDNA microarray.

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