Estimating the heritability for growth-related traits in the pearl oyster, Pinctada fucata martensii (Dunker)

Twelve paternal half-sib families (or 36 full-sib families) of the pearl oyster, Pinctada fucata martensii (Dunker), were produced according to the requirements of hierarchical genetic mating design. A total of 4320 individuals, aged 15 months, were measured for seven growth-related traits. Predicated upon the additive-dominance genetic analysis model, varying genetic variance components and then heritabilities of the growth-related traits of interest were estimated using analysis of variance. Results showed that seven growth-related traits had larger additive genetic variances (P < 0.05); the dominance genetic variance of shell weight (SW) was smaller (P > 0.05), the dominance genetic variances of other six traits were all larger (P < 0.05). Narrow- and broad-sense heritabilities for the seven traits were, respectively, 0.64 +/- 0.10 and 0.78 +/- 0.12 for shell length, 0.49 +/- 0.06 and 0.63 +/- 0.09 for shell height, 0.38 +/- 0.14 and 0.54 +/- 0.16 for shell breadth, 0.41 +/- 0.17 and 0.56 +/- 0.11 for hinge length, 0.53 +/- 0.11 and 0.68 +/- 0.08 for body weight, 0.35 +/- 0.07 and 0.55 +/- 0.08 for tissue weight and 0.67 +/- 0.10 and 0.75 +/- 0.16 for SW. All heritability estimates were statistically significant (P < 0.05). According to these results, the mass selection procedure is suggested for the breeding of P. martensii.