Comparative Analysis of the Growth and Biochemical Composition of Backcrosses and Their Parents in Abalone

Abalone is a valuable and popular seafood with high nutritional value. Interspecific hybridization and back-crossing are effective ways to improve the yield and quality of abalone. In this study, interspecific backcrosses were conducted between the hybrids of Haliotis discus hannai female x H. fulgens male and their parental species. The backcrosses comprised five populations based on crossing combinations: hybrid F1 (DF), purebreds (DD, FF) and backcross populations (DD x DF and DF x FF). The growth, survival, and muscle nutritional components of five abalone populations were compared in a 13-month culture experiment. The results showed that DF and DD x DF had significant advantages in growth and survival. For nutritional components, backcrosses had levels of crude protein, crude lipid, and glycogen that were intermediate between their parents and were biased toward the respective recurrent parents. The assessment of production performance indicated that DF and DD x DF may have potential applications in the abalone aquaculture industry. This study has provided useful information for the healthy and sustainable development of the abalone industry.