Calling all experts in seaweed cryopreservation
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I've fielded some inquiries recently about seaweed cryopreservation, specifically cryopreservation of kelp seed material to 1) have a vault of material that is in long-term storage to draw down on should anything happen to a seed bank or regional collection of seed material, 2) to preserve genetic resources and 3) to study population change over time. I'm no expert in this field, but I am interested in the latest scientific developments.
Is there anyone in this community who is working on cryopreservation of seaweeds? If so, what insights might you have on advancements and future directions of this technology? What are some common mistakes to avoid?
I'm sharing citations for a few resources to get the conversation started:- Diehl et al. 2023. The sugar kelp Saccharina latissima I: recent advances in a changing climate. Annals of Botany Volume 133, Issue 1, 1 January 2024, Pages 183–212. https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcad173.
- Sæther, M., Diehl, N., Monteiro, C. et al. The sugar kelp Saccharina latissima II: Recent advances in farming and applications. J Appl Phycol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-024-03213-1.
- Wouter Visch, Cecilia Rad-Menéndez, Göran M. Nylund, Henrik Pavia, Matthew J. Ryan, and John Day .2019. Underpinning the Development of Seaweed Biotechnology: Cryopreservation of Brown Algae (Saccharina latissima) Gametophytes. Biopreservation and Biobanking 2019 17:5, 378-386. https://doi.org/10.1089/bio.2018.0147
- Yang, H., Y. Huo, J.C. Yee and C. Yarish. 2021. Germplasm Cryopreservation of Macroalgae for Aquaculture Breeding and Natural Resource Conservation: A Review. Aquaculture 544, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2021.737037. Here is the link for the Science Direct Open Manuscript.
@kendall_barbery
I know that this is a *very* late reply, but I was in contact with Bigelow - in Maine. They seem to do something similar to what you're describing here. I would recommend reaching out to them to see if they are willing to chat with you