An international need exists for a stable source of high-quality purified agar (agarose) for biochemical and microbiological research. Material is currently obtained exclusively from natural populations by labor-intensive methods, since culture systems have yet to be widely developed. Present production of agar is threatened by overexploitation of natural populations, pollution and unstable socio-political situations in countries marketing this material. Ocean Genetics, Inc. has brought together a team of scientists with expertise in diverse areas of algal physiology and biochemistry in an attempt to develop superior strains of agarophytes. These agarophytes will be manipulated through biochemical and physiological means to produce maximal quantities of high-grade agar in culture. The proposed program is attractive because it will supply the means for making aquaculture of these plants competitive with the exploitation of natural sources of seaweeds.The potential commercial application as described by the awardee: Purified agarose preparations are currently used in a wide variety of analytical and research techniques, including electrophoresis, immunology, cell cloning and chromatography. Work in these fields and in other potential areas is hampered by the high cost and unreliability of the basic plant material. This proposal is expected to result in plant strains and biochemical techniques that will allow the proposers to effectively and economically cultivate agarophytes in large unfinished scale systems and to provide a . reliable source for this product. Ocean Genetics, Inc., is a marine biotechnology firm specializing in the production of commercial products for marine organisms.
