From December 28, 2017 to January 4, 2018,Zhai Wanying, a teacher at Shanghai Ocean University (SOU), worked with theSnow Dragon test vessel at Zhongshan Station in Antarctica toimplement the international cooperation project of the National Natural ScienceFoundation (NRF) – the evolution of fish immunization under extreme conditions.
Due to serious ice conditions, theSnow Dragon boat stopped at 38 kilometers from Zhongshan Stationand carried out supplies and expeditions to Zhongshan Station. Zhai Wanying wasresponsible for the collection and early preservation of Antarctic fish samplesat Zhongshan Station. Owing to the objective environmental constraints, work atZhongshan Station was carried out only for 4 days. After his hard work, 4species of Antarctic fishes were collected near Zhongshan Station, Gymnodracoacuticeps, Trematomus bernacchii and two species of the genusTrematomus that need to be subsequently identified by molecular systematics.
The tissue samples were dissected andpreserved under limited conditions of Zhongshan Station. After returning to theSnow Dragon vessel, the fishes collected from Zhongshan Stationwere temporarily reared, in addition to carrying out attack protection test andsample tissue preservation, and the subsequent experiments would be conductedafter returning to the university.
At present, the Snow Dragonship has completed its work at Zhongshan Station and an important work to sailto Engels Island in the Ross Sea for the 34th Antarctic expedition is thestart-up of the new Ross Sea Station. SOU Researchers will carry out Antarcticfish resource survey and sample collection in Rose Sea, isolate cell componentsand process tissue slices while collecting environmental micro-organisms in thewater-body, investigating and sampling the environmental conditions of the fishin sampling sites and providing sound data for subsequent experiments.
Zhai Wanying, a doctoral student in theChen Liangbiao Task Force of the College of Fishery and Life Science, went to theAntarctica on November 8, 2017 to attend the 34th Antarctic Expedition andconducted scientific mission at Antarctic Zhongshan Station, Ross Sea, PrydzBay and Amundsen Sea.