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Affymetrix, Aqua Gen, CIGENE Collaborate on Biomarker Patterns in Atlantic Salmon

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Aqua Gen, the Center for Integrative Genomics (CIGENE), and Affymetrix today announced they have partnered to successfully genotype more than 900,000 biomarkers per sample from the Atlantic salmon.

Aqua Gen and CIGENE partnered with Affy to develop a salmon genotyping screening array consisting of 923,627 SNP markers and both diploid and tetraploid sequence variants. With their ongoing study, the partners hope to identify polymorphic high-resolution markers for use in downstream marker trait association studies, genomic selection programs, and other applications in genetics and ecology.

"This high-density SNP array gives us entirely new possibilities for improving the disease resistance and robustness of farmed Atlantic salmon," Nina Santi, director of R&D at Aqua Gen, said in a statement. "In particular, we are enthusiastic about the prospects of implementing so-called genomic selection in our breeding program. This array will also facilitate the identification of causal genetic variants underlying complex traits, thus contributing greatly to our understanding of salmonid biology."

As part of its support of the project, Affy offered its expertise in automated genotyping using its Axiom Genotyping Solution, a set of tools and analysis software to identify, validate, and screen complex genetic traits.

Aqua Gen, based in Trondheim, Norway, is a selective breeding company that develops genetic material for the sea-farming industry. It is part of the Erich Wesjohann Group. CIGENE is part of the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.