BGU Develops Sustainable Biotechnology to Advance Aquaculture Farming
BGU Develops Sustainable Biotechnology to Advance Aquaculture Farming
December 3, 2012
BEER-SHEVA, Israel, November 27, 2012 – Ben-Gurion University of the Negev has developed an advanced gene-silencing biotechnology for aquaculture that changes the sex of prawns and yields faster growing all male populations, resulting in greater output and farmer income.
“The technology is sustainable because it doesn’t use any chemicals or hormones and does not create genetically modified organisms,” said BGU’s Prof. Amir Sagi.
“This is made possible through the unique monosex culture of prawns, which we can obtain by using our original discovery of a naturally occurring, androgenic hormone that influences their gender. Since males are faster growers, this discovery could help farmers increase their income.”
The innovative technique was patented and licensed through BGN Technologies, BGU’s technology transfer company, to the Tiran Group, an Israeli shipping company that operates aquaculture farms in China. The Tiran Group is working with Green Advance Ltd. in Vietnam to implement the technology.
Incumbent of the Lily and Sidney Oelbaum Chair in Applied Biochemistry, Prof. Sagi is the former dean of BGU’s Faculty of Natural Sciences, a member of the Department of Life Sciences and the National Institute for Biotechnology in the Negev, and serves as president of the International Society for Invertebrate Reproduction and Development.
“Prof. Sagi has pioneered a number of techniques to increase rice and crustacean output in countries like Vietnam for years,” says Doron Krakow, executive vice president of American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
“As the world faces a challenging population growth and decreasing resources, his work provides sustainable solutions for developing nations.”
The world population has reached 7 billion and is projected to grow to 10 billion by 2050.
ABOUT AMERICANS FOR BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY
By supporting a world-class academic institution that not only nurtures the Negev, but also shares its expertise locally and globally, Americans for Ben-Gurion University engages a community of Americans who are committed to improving the world. David Ben-Gurion envisioned that Israel’s future would be forged in the Negev. The cutting-edge research carried out at Ben-Gurion University drives that vision by sustaining a desert Silicon Valley, with the “Stanford of the Negev” at its center. The Americans for Ben-Gurion University movement supports a 21st century unifying vision for Israel by rallying around BGU’s remarkable work and role as an apolitical beacon of light in the Negev desert.
About Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev embraces the endless potential we have as individuals and as a commonality to adapt and to thrive in changing environments. Inspired by our location in the desert, we aim to discover, to create, and to develop solutions to dynamic challenges, to pose questions that have yet to be asked, and to push beyond the boundaries of the commonly accepted and possible.
We are proud to be a central force for inclusion, diversity and innovation in Israel, and we strive to extend the Negev’s potential and our entrepreneurial spirit throughout the world. For example, the multi-disciplinary School for Sustainability and Climate Change at BGU leverages over 50 years of expertise on living and thriving in the desert into scalable solutions for people everywhere.
BGU at a glance:
20,000 students | 800 senior faculty | 3 campuses | 6 faculties: humanities & social sciences, health sciences, engineering sciences, natural sciences, business & management, and desert research.
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James Fattal, J Cubed Communications
516.289.1496
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