otjanee Nadtirom got hooked on fisheries science while fishing as a child. She grew up in Putthaisong, which is in the Buriram Province in northeastern Thailand. When she was old enough to attend college, a school in the same region as Putthaisong–Khon Kaen University–was just starting a degree program in fisheries science. Even though the fisheries science major was still in its infancy, Potjanee was undeterred and was one of the first to enroll in the program.
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Aquaculture was emphasized in Nadtirom's fisheries science coursework. As she took more classes at Khon Kaen, her interest in aquaculture developed. After graduation she joined the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)—a well-known and well-respected aquaculture institute and CRSP research site in Thailand. Nadtirom was first introduced to the CRSP in 1994 while working at AIT as a research assistant. During that time, she worked on the CRSP-funded high-input deep pond experiment in Thailand's Udornthani Province. Nadtirom gained valuable, practical experience as a research assistant but wanted to strengthen her academic knowledge in the field of aquaculture. In 1997 she decided to pursue a Master of Science degree at AIT. Currently, Nadtirom and her major professor CRSP principal investigator Yang Yi are concentrating on a new CRSP project that ties in with Nadtirom’s requirements for her master's degree.
Nadtirom began working on her master's project in September of 2000. Her research compares growth performance of different sex genotypes of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and the effects of androgen treatment. She is building on past findings that indicate that genotypic females do not grow as quickly as sex-reversed males. She notes that her experiment should shed more light on this issue by comparing growth performance between different phenotype/genotype combinations. (See the box at the end of this article for related publications by CRSP researchers.)
Nadtirom believes her work will enable farmers to obtain market-sized tilapia in less time and provide larger tilapia in the marketplace. She stresses, "If results show that existing production practices for Nile tilapia can be improved, it could mean that farmers adopting improved techniques in production could have the edge over their competitors." She believes that Nile tilapia has great potential for alleviating poverty since it is such a fast-growing species. If the growth performance is improved, she feels that Nile tilapia will gain even more importance in the aquaculture arena. Nadtirom emphasizes, "Of course the problem of early maturation and recruitment is still unresolved and as such is a management challenge when culturing [Nile tilapia]."
Nadtirom also identifies several challenges that face the aquaculture industry in Thailand. She believes the largest constraint is the decline of the environment due to lack of concern for water quality. This problem has impeded aquaculture development in Thailand. Potjanee also states a need to increase the quality and quantity of fish seed to farmers, especially in rural areas. Finally, the needs of the farmers are not being met due to lack of technological development.
When asked about men's and women's participation in aquaculture in Thailand, she noted, "Like anywhere else in the world, aquaculture and fishery work has always been male-dominated, but in Thailand today it seems that there is a greater degree of balance, with more and more women taking up aquaculture." She believes that the industry should recognize that there are many highly qualified women in the aquaculture field today.
Potjanee Nadtirom is a motivated individual who would like to get further involved with development work after graduation. Until then, you can find her working hard on her growth performance project, drawing, painting, or reading by day and stargazing by night.
| The following list includes examples of previous PD/A CRSP research related to Nadtirom's master's project. You can access these abstracts and reports through the CRSP website at the addresses provided. Complete copies of these reports can be ordered through the website at: <pdacrsp.orst.edu/pubs/gen_order/gen_order.html>
Gale, W.L., M.S. Fitzpatrick, and C.B. Schreck, 1996. Masculinization of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) through immersion in 17 Green, B.W., E.H. Rizkalla, and A.R. El Gamal, 1995. Use of 17 Richman III, N.H. and E.G. Grau, 1995. Effect of 17 Smith, E.S. and R.P. Phelps, 1996. Reproductive efficiency of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and "red" tilapia (Oreochromis spp.) and comparative growth and efficacy of sex reversal of Nile tilapia and "red" tilapia. In: Egna, H.S., B. Goetze, D. Burke, M. McNamara, and D. Clair (Editors), Thirteenth Annual Technical Report. Pond Dynamics/Aquaculture CRSP, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, pp. 105-107. This paper can be viewed online at <pdacrsp.orst.edu/pubs/technical/13techhtml/2.c.4/2.c.4.html> Smith, E.S. and R.P. Phelps, 1997. Reproductive efficiency, fry growth, and response to sex reversal of Nile and red tilapia. In: Burke, D., B. Goetze, D. Clair, and H. Egna (Editors), Fourteenth Annual Technical Report. Pond Dynamics/Aquaculture CRSP, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, pp. 112-119. This paper can be downloaded in PDF format from <pdacrsp.orst.edu/pubs/technical/14tchpdf/2.c.5.pdf> |
-methyltestosterone or 17
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