RESEARCH - Research Summary

Research Summary

Infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) causes severe symptoms and high mortalities in Atlantic salmon, and is having a serious negative impact on salmon aquaculture in BC and thus on socio-economic factors such as job creation in remote coastal communities. The estimated economic loss resulting from recent disease outbreaks (mid 90’s and 2001-2003 epizootics) was $40 million, which represents $200 million in lost sales. We will conduct field trials of a promising new vaccine against IHNV (the Novartis APEX-IHN vaccine) that has the potential to reduce IHNV infections in farmed Atlantic salmon, thereby improving fish health and welfare. However, this vaccine has not yet been tested under field conditions, so research is needed to determine whether there could be any adverse side-effects in commercially reared salmon.

We will perform a comprehensive examination of physiological, immunological and blood parameters in vaccinated and unvaccinated fish, by sampling the fish in the freshwater hatchery (both prior to and after vaccination). Following seawater entry, fish will be divided between the West Vancouver Department of Fisheries and Oceans research laboratory, and two commercial production sites, where they will be held in net pens. We will compare the effects of the vaccine on fish in net-pens and fish held in research laboratory tanks to provide information on fish welfare under natural field conditions (i.e. potentially exposed to IHNV from migrating salmonids) versus the artificial sanitary conditions in the research laboratory. We will also compare IHNV vaccinated fish reared in two geographically isolated net pen sites. This comparison will utilize production data (eg. water quality, fish growth, feed conversion) collected at two sites containing large net pens of IHNV vaccinated fish subjected to highly intensive production conditions. The results of this project will provide information on the health and welfare effects of this novel vaccine in farmed Atlantic salmon.

Network Investigators

Dr. Patricia Schulte, Assistant Professor, Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, BC
Dr. Scott LaPatra, Director of Research and Development, Clear Springs Foods, Inc., ID, USA
Dr. Laura Brown, IBM-NRC, Halifax, NS
Dr. Shannon Balfry, The University of British Columbia, West Vancouver, BC