The Fish Vet's Blog

From: “Dr. David Scarfe”
Date: 27 December 2012 2:23:30 AWST
Subject: AquaVetMed: New approaches for fish vaccination – using fly larvae

December 26, 2013
Bionaturis project launches vaccination of farmed fish with oral vaccines

Spain – Bionaturis, a biotechnology company, has launched the Aquafly project in collaboration with the Department of Chemical Engineering, Food Technology and Environmental Technologies, Faculty of Sciences, University of Cadiz and the Technological Centre of Andalusia Aquaculture (Ctaqua) to more effective alternatives in farmed fish vaccination.

The idea for the project came from internal developments in Bionaturis for aquaculture, after meeting the needs of industry through meetings held recently with producers and national and international veterinary companies operating in the sector. The technical objective is research and development of new prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines orally, based on the production platform and Flylife system (use of insect larvae as bioreactors for the production of biological drugs) which can be used more efficient and safe from diseases affecting current aquaculture. The research program, which will run for three years, is led by Ana de las Heras, doctor of veterinary science and scientific Bionaturis. This project has been funded by the Technological Corporation of Andalusia (CTA).

The increased density of animals in farms results in a higher concentration of pathogens and disease onset in these fish. Experts estimate that 20 percent of aquaculture production is lost due to the onset of disease. Some of the major diseases that cause significant losses in these sectors will be studied in the project Aquafly.

Thanks to our technology platform Flylife, highlights Ana de las Heras, “develop vaccines and other treatments to be administered orally in a safe and effective against some major pathogens affecting current aquaculture”. For this sector, will represent “a breakthrough”, and that “so far, for most treatments, injection is the only way that has proved really effective, but has major limitations due to cost and management. Not only stress generated by handling, fish size limits the use of injectable vaccines in smaller fish, which is more convenient and effective vaccination against some pathogens. ”

This project is aimed at pathogens and species most important in Andalusia, coupled with the participation in the European project Targetfish. It is oriented at viral vaccines and other species in Europe and ratifies Bionaturis as a leader in the research and development of vaccines for aquaculture, a sector of exponential growth in the coming years.

See the source (http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/1684052/0/) for the full story, and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hF6MNIBKkXU for a video clip of the Aquafly project (in Spanish).
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__________________________

Just having a bit of fun with self promotion.

You can check out my latest video here –
http://youtu.be/KkdEjmZAhy4

—
Yours sincerely,

Dr Richmond Loh
BSc BVMS MPhil MANZCVS (Aq & Pathol)
The Fish Vet, Perth, Western Australia.
Veterinary Medicine for fish.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383

Dr Loh, The Fish Vet, published a couple of articles in the Aquatic Vet News.

See pages 12 and 20-21 of this document link –

http://www.wavma.org/media/Documents-for-download/AVN-2011-5(1).pdf

This is a neat idea for not just for finfish farming, but for things such as abalone?

 

Aquaculture
Volume 375, Number 3 (January 2013)
	Growth and food source of the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus cultured below fish cages — Potential for integrated multi-trophic aquaculture
	Authors:	Hisashi Yokoyama
	Author Affiliations:	no affiliations available
	Source:	Aquaculture, Volume 375, Number 3 (January 2013)
	Page Numbers:	28 – 38
	Available Full Text:	Full Text: Subscription Required to view full text Format: PDF Size: Unknown Location: Publisher’s Site Authentication: Publisher’s Site
	Abstract:	In order to examine the efficiency of co-culturing fish with the Japanese common sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus, field cultivation experiments were conducted in Gokasho Bay, central Japan. I cultured A. japonicusjuveniles below a fish cage and at a control station for 238days, monitored the wet weight, and analyzed its stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes (d13C, d15N) together with potential food sources, and found that (1) juveniles cultured below fish cages exhibited high survivorship (96%) and significantly higher specific growth rate (1.9%) than those at the control site (1.2%), and (2) the juveniles had significantly reduced d13C values (mean±SD=-19.1±0.3‰ vs. -17.5±0.4‰ at the control station), suggesting the incorporation of C3plant material in fish feed through fish feces and settling organic matter. All sea cucumbers which were further cultured for additional 307days below fish cages grew to the marketable size (range and mean wet weight=142–181g, 160g, n=9). In order to evaluate the effect of density on growth, 6 culture vessels, in which 1, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 juveniles of A. japonicuswere stocked, were maintained below the fish cage over 118days. The results showed that the final mean weight of A. japonicusdecreased from 6.68g to 0.94g as the density increased with a large variation of weight at the end of the experiment (coefficient of variation=52.1–62.2%), suggesting that there was competition between individuals for a limited food supply and there were intraspecific effects on the growth. This study shows the possibility of integrated multi-trophic aquaculture in which A. japonicusis cultured in the water column below fish cages, because the survival and growth of the sea cucumbers were enhanced due to the ability to avoid predator interactions and adverse environmental conditions as well as nutritional feed supply from the fish cage.
	Citation:	Hisashi Yokoyama . Growth and food source of the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicuscultured below fish cages — Potential for integrated multi-trophic aquaculture. Aquaculture, Volume 375, Number 3 (January 2013), pp. 28-38, <http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?ArticleID=4AA3B4FBC103DDE91C6F&gt;
	URL:	http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?ArticleID=4AA3B4FBC103DDE91C6F

I thought that this is a great article to again, illustrate the point that even though we’re dealing with the one type of bacteria, they exhibit different susceptibilities to antibiotics. The second and very important point is that antibiotic resistance formation is a real deal and that we should practice judicious use of it, especially in the ornamental fish industry.

NB: For a run down of this bacteria’s nomenclature, click on this link, to jump to my previous post.

Journal of Fish Diseases
Volume 36, Number 1 (January 2013)
	Antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of Flavobacterium columnare isolates collected worldwide from 17 fish species
	Authors:	A M Declercq, F Boyen, W den Broeck, P Bossier, A Karsi, F Haesebrouck, A Decostere
	Author Affiliations:	no affiliations available
	Source:	Journal of Fish Diseases, Volume 36, Number 1 (January 2013)
	Page Numbers:	45 – 55
	Available Full Text:	Full Text: Subscription Required to view full text Format: PDF Size: unknown Location: Publisher’s Site Authentication: EBSCOhost EJS
	Abstract:	Flavobacterium columnareis the causative agent of columnaris disease in diverse fish species worldwide. Although columnaris is an important disease, the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of F. columnareis not well studied. Thus, the purpose of this study was to test the in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility of 97 F. columnare isolates collected worldwide between 1987 and 2011 from 17 fish species. The broth microdilution technique was utilized for reliable testing of these fastidious organisms. None of the isolates displayed acquired resistance to florfenicol, gentamicin, ormetoprim-sulfadimethoxine and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Acquired resistance to chloramphenicol was detected in 1%, to nitrofuran in 5%, to oxytetracycline in 11% and to enrofloxacin, flumequine and oxolinic acid in 10%, 16% and 16% of the isolates, respectively, as reflected by a bimodal or trimodal distribution of their minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs). One isolate showed acquired resistance towards several antimicrobial agents including erythromycin. Another isolate revealed acquired resistance towards – amongst others – ampicillin. The isolates displaying acquired resistance originated from ornamental fish species or Vietnamese catfish, except for two isolates coming from wild channel catfish in which acquired resistance was encountered towards oxytetracycline only. Fifty per cent of the resistant isolates from ornamental fish were shown to have acquired resistance against three classes of antimicrobial agents, assigning these isolates as multiple resistant. These data might indicate less prudent use of antimicrobials especially in ornamental fish species.
	Citation:	A M Declercq, F Boyen, W den Broeck, P Bossier, A Karsi, F Haesebrouck, A Decostere . Antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of Flavobacterium columnareisolates collected worldwide from 17 fish species. Journal of Fish Diseases, Volume 36, Number 1 (January 2013), pp. 45-55, ;
	URL:	http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?ArticleID=4677B3555F70B2F9D1F3

What would be your response when someones fabricates an answer?

“you’re so full of BS (bull shark)!”

Check out the full article at this link – http://www.undercurrentnews.com/2012/12/04/study-uses-light-to-detect-fish-freshness/?utm_source=wysija&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=americas_newsletter_dec_4

Via facebook, through Morley Aquariums, I came across another great way of keeping your aquatic pets cool through the heat wave.

If you have an external filter unit for your aquarium, you can place the cannister in an esky full of ice and this will help cool the water in your aquarium without altering the water chemistry. Take care not to create an electrical hazard though.

Check out some more tips from older posts on The Fish Vet’s blog – https://thefishvet.com/?s=evaporative+cooling

Check out my latest video upload regarding environmental enrichment for fish –