Investigating the establishment of primary cell culture from different abalone (Haliotis midae) tissues

The abalone, Haliotis midae, is the most valuable commodity in South African aquaculture. The increasing demand for marine shellfish has stimulated research on the biology and physiology of target species in order to improve knowledge on growth, nutritional requirements and pathogen identification. The slow growth rate and long generation time of abalone restrict efficient design of in vivo experiments. Therefore, in vitro systems present an attractive alternative for short term experimentation. The use of marine invertebrate cell cultures as a standardised and controlled system to study growth, endocrinology and disease contributes to the understanding of the biology of economically important molluscs. This paper investigates the suitability of two different H. midae tissues, larval and haemocyte, for establishing primary cell cultures. Cell cultures are assessed in terms of culture initiation, cell yield, longevity and susceptibility to contamination. Haliotis midae haemocytes are shown to be a more feasible tissue for primary cell culture as it could be maintained without contamination more readily than larval cell cultures. The usefulness of short term primary haemocyte cultures is demonstrated here with a growth factor trial. Haemocyte cultures can furthermore be used to relate phenotypic changes at the cellular level to changes in gene expression at the molecular level.