Breeding for resistance to viral diseases in salmonids.

TL;DRAbstract

The salmonids, and in particular the Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and rainbow trout (Onchorynchus mykiss), are 'pioneer species' in modern aquaculture and aquaculture breeding. Viral diseases currently constitute one of the largest challenges to the salmonid farming industry, and resistance to such diseases has become an important part of the goal of many breeding companies. Genetic variation in resistance has been demonstrated for a number of viral diseases both in Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout, with heritability estimates typically ranging from 0.2 to 0.4. The results that are available indicate that genetic correlations between diseases are generally low. For both species and several diseases, response to selection has been experimentally demonstrated. Resistance towards one or more viral diseases is part of the breeding goal of most or all ongoing breeding programmes. Selection is usually based on controlled challenge tests, and since challenge-tested animals cannot be used as

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