Sea lice larvae under the microscope.
Photo: Benchmark Genetics / Nofima / Luseless project
Benchmark Genetics and the Norwegian research institute Nofima have launched LuseLess, a research and innovation project designed to improve resistance to sea lice in Atlantic salmon by combining genetics and immunology.
The project has received NOK 10 million in funding from the Research Council of Norway through its Innovation Project in Industry (IPN) scheme and will run from January 2026 to December 2027.
From parasite control to biological resistance
Sea lice remain one of the most persistent biological challenges in salmon aquaculture, affecting fish welfare, production efficiency and environmental sustainability, with lice levels the defining factor in Norway's "traffic light" permitting system.
While a wide range of operational and technological measures are currently used to control lice levels, the Luseless project partners argue that long-term progress depends on shifting from parasite management to breeding fish that are inherently more resilient in their own biological defences.
The project builds on insights from earlier research indicating that Pacific salmon species possess cellular and genetic mechanisms that either prevent lice attachment or eliminate parasites shortly after infection. By applying this knowledge to Atlantic salmon, the partners aim to identify new resistance traits suitable for use in commercial breeding programmes.
At the core of the Luseless project is an effort to better understand how variation in the salmon’s cellular immune response influences resistance to sea lice. Researchers said they will investigate whether these immune responses are heritable, how they correlate with lice levels in controlled challenge tests, and how they interact with other important production traits.
In parallel, the project will develop scalable biopsy and immune-profiling methods that can be applied across large fish populations. According to the partners, this step is essential to translate advanced immunological research into practical breeding tools.
Benchmark Genetics is contributing substantial in-kind resources, including access to samples from sea lice challenge tests in Iceland, large-scale genotyping capacity and expertise from its global salmon genetics team.
Meanwhile, Nofima brings specialist competence in immune cell function and profiling at sea lice attachment sites, as well as experience in developing methods that can be implemented in commercial breeding programmes.
The project is led by Serap Gonen, Lead for Salmon Genomics at Benchmark Genetics. “LuseLess represents a move towards breeding fish that are better equipped to resist sea lice by design,” Gonen said in a press release.
“By combining advanced genetics with immune biology, we aim to deliver durable improvements in sea lice resistance that can be implemented at scale,” she added.
“This project allows us to translate detailed knowledge of immune cell function into practical tools for selective breeding,” added Nick Robinson, Senior Research Scientist at Nofima. “The combination of advanced immunology and industrial breeding expertise gives LuseLess strong potential to create real impact.”