Growing the reproductive cells (carpospores) of the seaweed, Kappaphycus striatum, in the laboratory until outplanting in the field and maturation to tetrasporophyte

Abstract

Carposporophytes of the seaweed, Kappaphycus striatum, from the wild were made to shed spores in the laboratory and grown in multi-step culture method until they reached maturity. For each succeeding transfer onto increasingly bigger culture vessels, there was a marked increase in the growth of carposporelings. When plantlets were ready for outdoor culture, they were placed in aquaria and concrete tanks and later moved to the sea in net cage and long-line for grow-out culture. Successfully growing sporelings from carposporophytes in the laboratory until they reach market size seems to depend on the stage of sporelings and environmental factors such as photoperiod and temperature. In this study, carpospore progenies (diploids) also matured into tetrasporophytes and haploid progenies showed resistance to higher temperature.