Chapter 16 - Future Developments

Abstract

Pearls are now a major component in a wide range of contemporary jewelry with about 10% of all jewelry items sold having pearls as the principal gems. The consumer market has also evolved into a highly complex and competitive world with a profusion of products for an increasingly discerning and demanding clientele. Given the potential economic and socioeconomic benefits of developing commercial pearl production, a number of countries have undertaken preliminary research and trial pearl production to determine the feasibility of such development. Recent years have seen a substantial increase in volume, and proportionally in value, of Chinese freshwater pearl production, which now makes up around 24% of cultured pearl production. Hatchery culture techniques are well established for all major pearl oyster species. This provides an opportunity for research aimed at generating the fundamental genetic information required to initiate selective breeding programs for desirable traits. Other aspects of genetic-based research that may have significant impacts on pearl production are the development of technologies such as triploidy and cryopreservation of pearl oyster gametes. Aspects of pearl oyster biology have found application beyond the cultured pearl industry. Pearl oyster nacre has proven to be a bioactive material with potential for bone repair and future research may demonstrate considerable biomedical application in this field.