Journal of Aquaculture Research & Development

Abstract

Feasibility Studies on Vitrification of Persian Sturgeon (Acipenser persicus)Embryos

Saeide Keivanloo and Mohammad Sudagar

The feasibility of cryopreservation by vitrification of Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) embryos at 48 h post-fertilization stage was investigated. Vitrification is considered the most promising option. Many factors are involved in the success of the process. The choice of a proper vitrificant solutions and temperature for thawing, were the parameters considered in the present study. Six vitrificant solutions (V1-V6) were tested using a stepwise incorporation protocol. The tested solutions contained acetamide as the main cryoprotectant +3 other permeable cryoprotectants +3 non-permeable cryoprotectants. Before loading the embryos into tubes, toxicity tested was affected with these solutions. The hatching rate of embryos that had been exposed to the vitrificant solutions was analyzed and the highest hatching rate was obtained with exposure to V1. After thawing (water bath, 0 or 20°C), embryos were incubated until hatched. The highest survival rate (69.69%) was observed in samples frozen with V1 and thawed at 20°C. These results establish that cryopreservation of Persian sturgeons embryos by vitrification is possible.