INCO Concerted Action
ICA4-CT-2001-10020
Summary of Final Report
Period 1 January 2002-31 December 2004
Meeting Reports
1. Introductory Note
The Global workshop, first concrete realization of the INCO Project, was organized at an early stage, shortly after the official start of the Project on January 1, 2002, and was intended to be the formal and practical ‘kick-off’ meeting of the Project.
Keywords of the Workshop:
· general topics of species description and species characterization, population description, biodiversity
· intercalibration of methodologies
· planning of other workshops
· planning of training courses
2. Programme
February 5: Oral presentations
February 6: Discussions
a.m.
· General objectives of INCO project; planning of activities
· Objectives of stays of visiting scientists
· Objectives of regional workshops
p.m.
· Discussions of a.m: continued
· Project management: financial aspects, reporting
February 7: Discussions
a.m.
· Regional workshops: practical planning
· Conclusions and recommendations
3. Participants and oral presentations
The purpose of the presentations was mainly to acquaint the audience with the expertise of all attendants’ Artemia expertise and to assess how complementarity and interaction of Project activities could be conceived.
a) INCO Members
1. RUG :
Sorgeloos Patrick, Laboratory of Aquaculture & Artemia Reference Center, Ghent University, Belgium: “Welcome and introduction”
Van Stappen Gilbert,Laboratory of Aquaculture & Artemia Reference Center, Ghent University, Belgium: “Artemia research at the Artemia Reference Center”
2. CLO-DVZ :
Bossier Peter, Agricultural Research Center-Ghent/Department of Sea Fisheries, Ostend, Belgium: “A database for Artemia authentication”
Wang Xiaomei, Agricultural Research Center-Ghent/Department of Sea Fisheries, Ostend, Belgium
3. AUTH:
Abatzopoulos Theodore, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Genetics, Development & Molecular Biology, Faculty of Sciences, School of Biology, Thessaloniki, Greece: “Running research projects at AUTH on Artemia and other organisms”
Baxevanis Thanos, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Genetics, Development & Molecular Biology, Faculty of Sciences, School of Biology, Thessaloniki, Greece
4. CSIC:
Amat Francisco, Instituto de Acuicultura de Torre de la Sal (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas de España), Ribera de Cabanes (Castellón), Spain: “Artemia biodiversity: current global resources and their sustainable exploitation”
5. La Sapienza : none
6. UBA: none
7. CTU:
Nguyen Van Hoa,Institute of Science for Aquaculture, Can Tho University, Can Tho, Vietnam: “Artemia pond culture, strain characterisation and its approach in Vietnam”
8. INAT:
Romdhane Mohammed, Institut National Agronomique de Tunisie, Université de Carthage, Tunis, Tunisia: “Status of the Artemia biodiversity in Tunisian salt areas”
9. RU:
Hecht Tom, Department of Ichthyology and Fisheries Science, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa
Kaiser Horst, Department of Ichthyology and Fisheries Science, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa: “Characterisation of southern African Artemia populations, and the use of Artemia as a vector for probionts and hormones”
10. SRI:
Xin Naihong, Salt Research Institute, Yingkou Road 831, 300450 Tanggu, Tianjin, PR China: “Artemia resources and their development in China”
11. UU:
Agh Naser, Artemia and Aquatic Animals Research Center, Urmia University, Iran: “Studies on Artemia populations from Iran”
12. UAM-X:
Castro Mejia Jorge, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Xochimilco, Depto. El Hombre y su Ambiente, , Mexico D.F., Mexico: “Artemia research in the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana-Xochimilco, Mexico”
13. UFRN:
Camara Marcos, Departamento de Oceanografia e Limnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil: “Artemia research at Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Natal, Brazil”
14. ULL:
Gajardo Gonzalo, Department of Basic Sciences/Laboratory of Genetics & Aquaculture, Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno, Chile: “Artemia characterization, species and speciation”
15. IART:
Maryan Peter, Institute for Artemia Research and Training, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Rajakkamangalam, India: “Research on Artemia in the Institute for Artemia Research and Training”
b) Guest Speakers (see below: ‘Involvement of Associated INCO partners):
Beardmore John, University College of Swansea, School of Biological Sciences, University of Wales, Swansea UK
Boyko Elena, Tyumen State Agricultural Academy - The Siberian Science-Research and Project-Construction Institute of Fishery Tyumen, Russia: “Authentication of Artemia from Russia”
Brendonck Luc, Laboratory Aquatic Ecology, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium: “Adaptations to life in hyper-oligotrophic ephermeral pools”
Clegg Jim, Bodega Marine Laboratory, Section of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California, Davis, Bodega Bay, USA: “The diversity of Artemia habitats is reflected in the biochemical repertoire of this remarkable organism”
Criel Godelieve, Department of Anatomy, Embryology and Histology, Ghent University, Belgium: “Morphological tools to help distinguishing Artemia species and populations”
De Meester Luc, Laboratory Aquatic Ecology, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium: “Dispersal, habitat size and genetic differentiation among zooplankton populations”
MacRae Tom, Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, N.S., Canada: “Microtubule proteins and chaperones: molecular technologies applied to study of the brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana”
Marden Brad, Research and Development, Utah Strategic Alliance, Utah, USA: “Recovery of the Great Salt Lake, USA, brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana) population”
4. Conclusions and Recommendations: Planning of Consortium Strategy
At the occasion of the Global Workshop, a number of concrete working guidelines were agreed upon, intending to contribute to the achievement of the Project’s objectives.
4.1. Involvement of ‘Associated’ INCO partners
The Project Consortium (PC) has the intention to involve, throughout the Project period, a number of experts in the field of Artemia study who are excluded from formal partnership to the INCO project (e.g. non-eligible countries affiliation; retired from active professional activity). Their role is envisaged as follows:
1. participation to Project events (Workshops), pending availability of alternative cq own financial resources;
2. access to information about Project’s activities; feedback and advice towards PC, thus providing added value to the PC’s scientific expertise
Additionally, for regional workshops, the participation of local or regional Artemia experts is highly recommended, and the respective Consortium members (CM), responsible for the Project’s regional workshops (INCO partners 10, 11 and 14) have committed themselves to invite a maximum of guest speakers (by alternative financing) to upgrade the scientific relevance of the event.
4.2. Identification of ‘Action Plans’ and ‘Partnerships’
The Consortium Members realized that scientific progress in various fields of Artemia biodiversity would benefit from:
1. identification of concrete points where action needs to be taken;
2. subdivision of the Consortium into smaller workable task forces.
The CM thus decided to identify a number of concrete actions ("action plans") and to create a number of task forces or partnerships ("thematic" and "regional"), each working in an informal way around certain concrete themes. Consortium members (and ‘associates’) can join these respective task forces on a voluntary basis. For practical convenience, a coordinator has been appointed for each task force. Each task force identifies its own priorities and strategies, in line with the Project’s objectives. The task force coordinators agree to report briefly about their activities at the occasion of the 6 month-reports and the various workshops; here feedback from the entire Consortium is to be given, and the Project Coordinator ensures that there is mutual information flow between the groups, and that the Project Objectives are used as common denominator for all task forces.
Action plans (with abbrevation of participating CM’s; coordinator in bold):
1. Database: ARC, AUTH, CSIC, SRI, ULL, IART
2. Cyst bank: ARC, CSIC, SRI, UU, Jim Clegg
3. Study visits (visiting scientists): ARC, AUTH, CSIC
4. Publications, Reports, Website, Code of Conduct for conservation of biodiversity and sustainable exploitation: John Beardmore, ARC, AUTH, RU
Regional partnerships:
1. Africa: RU, ARC, AUTH, CSIC, INAT
2. China: SRI, ARC, CLO-DVZ, AUTH, UU
3. Iran: UU, ARC, CLO-DVZ, AUTH, CSIC
4. Mediterranean: AUTH, CSIC, LA SAPIENZA, INAT
5. Central Asia: ARC, CLO-DVZ, UU, Brad Marden, Elena Bojko
6. Latin America: ULL, CLO-DVZ, CSIC, UBA, UMA-X, UFRN
7. South Asia: IART, ARC, CTU, UU
Thematic partnerships:
1. Adaptation/Speciation: UFRN, CLO-DVZ, CSIC, CTU, RU, SRI, UMA-X, ULL
2. Diapause: AUTH, CLO-DVZ, IART, La Sapienza, Tom McRae, Jim Clegg
3. Plasticity: CSIC, INAT, RU, UMA-X
4.3. Planning of Workshops and Training (Study visits)
The timing for the First regional Workshop (Work Package and Deliverable 2) was set at September 2002. As for the training programme, an essential part to reach the Project’s objectives, it was agreed among CM, conform to the recommendations of the Commission evaluating the Project Proposal, that the training programme should be tailored according to the needs of both the ‘trainees’ and the hosting institutes. Moreover, CM agreed that the stays of the visiting scientists should not be restricted to trainings in se, but should focus on concrete points of collaborative research for the benefit of both host and trainee, and should maximally result in such concrete output like joint publications.
1. Introductory Note
For reasons of optimal logistics and of maximal participation by guest speakers, the organisers (SRI, Salt Research Institute, Tanggu) decided to organize the Workshop in Beijing (Zhongyang Hotel) instead of at their premises in Tanggu.
Keywords of the Workshop:
· Artemia resources of China (coastal and inland)
· threats for local populations by introduction of foreign species
· initial evaluation of scientists’ visits
2. Programme
September 23: a.m.-p.m. Oral presentations
September 24: a.m. Oral presentations
September 25: Excursion to Tanggu; visit to Salt Research Institute, Tanggu Saltworks and Fish Farm
September 26: a.m.-p.m. Discussion
Participants and oral presentations:
Li Shusheng (Director Salt Research Institute): “Welcome and Introduction of Salt Research Institute”
a) INCO Members
1. RUG:
Sorgeloos Patrick, Laboratory of Aquaculture & Artemia Reference Center, Ghent University, Belgium: “Introduction to INCO project”
Van Stappen Gilbert, Laboratory of Aquaculture & Artemia Reference Center, Ghent University, Belgium:“INCO activities at Artemia Reference Center”
2. CLO-DVZ:
Bossier Peter, Agricultural Research Center-Ghent/Department of Sea Fisheries, Ostend, Belgium: “A rDNA-RFLP database for identifying commercial Artemia samples”
3. AUTH:
Abatzopoulos Theodore, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Genetics, Development & Molecular Biology, Faculty of Sciences, School of Biology, Thessaloniki, Greece: “Artemia characterisation based on mtDNA RFLP analyses”
Baxevanis Thanos, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Genetics, Development & Molecular Biology, Faculty of Sciences, School of Biology, Thessaloniki, Greece
4. CSIC:
Amat Francisco, Instituto de Acuicultura de Torre de la Sal (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas de España), Ribera de Cabanes (Castellón), Spain: “Artemia biodiversity: current global resources and their sustainable exploitation”
Nieves Sanz Maria, Instituto de Acuicultura de Torre de la Sal (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas de España), Ribera de Cabanes (Castellón), Spain
5. La Sapienza:
Mura Graziella, Dipartamento di Biologia Animale é dell'Uomo, Laboratorio di Zoologia Applicata, Università La Sapienza, Rome, Italy: “Use of morphological characters as a tool for species separation”
Giampaolo Rossetti, Dipartamento di Biologia Animale é dell'Uomo, Laboratorio di Zoologia, Università La Sapienza, Rome, Italy
6. UBA:
Rosa Graciela Cohen de Sanchez, Universidad de Buenos Aires Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina: “An overview of the team's activities”
7. CTU:
Van Hong Nguyen Thi, Institute of Science for Aquaculture, Can Tho University, Vietnam: “Artemia culture in Southeast Asia: emphasis to Vietnam”
8. INAT:
Romdhane Mohammed, Institut National Agronomique de Tunisie, Université de Carthage, Tunis, Tunisia
9. RU:
Kaiser Horst, Department of Ichthyology and Fisheries Science, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa: “Preliminary RFLP analysis of mtDNA from southern African Artemia”
10. SRI:
Xin Naihong, Salt Research Institute, Tanggu, Tianjin, PR China,
Sui Liying, Salt Research Institute, Tanggu, Tianjin, P.R. China: “Characterization of Artemia from Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Salt lakes”
Yu Xiuling, Salt Research Institute, Tanggu, Tianjin, PR China: “Characterization of 4 Tibetan Artemia strains and HUFA profile during enrichment and starvation”
Jin Zhiling, Salt Research InstituteTanggu, Tianjin, P.R. China,
Chen Ziqiang, Salt Research Institute, Tanggu, Tianjin, P.R. China
11. UU:
Agh Naser, Artemia and Aquatic Animals Research Center, Urmia University, Iran: “Coexistence of bisexual and parthenogenetic Artemia populations in Lake Urmia”
12. UAM-X:
Thalia Castro, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Xochimilco, Depto. El Hombre Y su Ambiente, Mexico: “Progress in Artemia study at UMA-X”
13. UFRN:
Camara Marcos, Departamento de Oceanografia e Limnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil: “Ecological threats to Artemia franciscana Kellogg (Crustacea; Anostraca) populations in the coastal saltworks of Rio Grande do Norte, northeastern Brazil”
14. ULL:
Gajardo Gonzalo, Department of Basic Sciences/Laboratory of Genetics & Aquaculture, Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno, Chile: “Artemia diversity and evolution in South America: new results and ideas in the framework of the Artemia Biodiversity project”
15. IART:
Maryan Peter, Institute for Artemia Research and Training, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Rajakkamangalam, India: “Status of Artemia production in the coastal salt works of India”
b) Guest Speakers & other attendants:
As this workshop focuses on Artemia from China, a number of Chinese participants from other institutes/universities had been invited:
Chen Shao-zhong, Hangu Saltworks, Hangu, Tianjin: “The application of Artemia and development of new Artemia product”
Dong Zhihua, China National Salt Industry Corporation, Beijing
Jia Qinxian, Open Laboratory of Saline Lake Resources and Environment, The Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Beijing: “Improvement of insect ecdysome on the hatching rate of Artemia eggs”
Kong Fanjing, Research & Development Center of Salt lake and Epithermal Deposits, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Beijing:“Genetic diversity of halophilic organism in Chinese salt lakes and application prospect for plant salt tolerance genetic engineering”
Liang Peilin, China National Salt Industry Corporation, Beijing
Lin Jiahua, China National Salt Industry Corporation, Beijing
Li Yanan, Marine Science and Engineering College, Tianjin Science and Technology University, Tanggu, Tianjin
Liu Fengqi, Life Sciences College, Nankai University, Tianjin
Sun Jingxian, Dalian Fisheries University, Dalian: “Some ecological parameters of Artemia parthenogenetica from Gahai Lake and its use in resource exploitation”
Wang Xiaomei, Tianjin Agriculture University
Xing Kezhi, Tianjin Agriculture University
Zeng Hui, Life Sciences College, Nankai University, Tianjin: “The cloning of the Brine Shrimp DNA fragments correlated to the Bombyx mori doublesex gene”
Zhang Fu, Marine Science and Engineering College, Tianjin Science and Technology University, Tanggu, Tianjin: “Preliminary study on the effect of Na/Mg ratio of artificial seawater and natural seawater on hatching ability of Artemia cysts”
Zhang Yanmei, China National Salt Industry Corporation, Beijing
Zheng Mianping, R&D Center of Saline Lakes and Epithermal Deposits, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Open Laboratory of Saline Lake Resources and Environment Research, Ministry of Land and Resources, Beijing.