Background: Paralichthys orbignyanus is the species of the greatest potential for marine and estuarine fish farming in southern Brazil. Consequently, embryo cryopreservation becomes an important tool for increasing their production.
Objective: To evaluate the effects of cooling protocols on the viability of embryos of P. orbignyanus at two stages of development (neurula and early differentiation of the tail).
Materials and methods: Control embryos were maintained at 23 degree C and treated embryos were cooled to 15 degree C, 10 degree C and 5 degree C at rapid, moderate and slow cooling rates. Then embryos were maintained at these different temperatures for 30, 60 and 90 min and the loss of viability assessed as hatching rates (HR) and morphologically normal larvae (MNL).
Results: The average HR for embryos following cooling was higher for those at the tail stage compared to the neurula stage (P<0.05). In both stages there was no statistical difference between the HR of control embryos and those exposed to rapid cooling. Also for tail stage embryos, there was no difference between MNL of control and rapidly cooled embryos.
Conclusion: As first steps in the development of cryopreservation methods for P. orbignyanus embryos, the use of a rapid cooling and holding at 5 degree C for 30 min are recommended.