Validation of dietary medication and sterilised seawater to reduce the severity of Kudoa thyrsites in farmed Atlantic Salmon

Description

Farmed Atlantic Salmon are at risk of infection with Kudoa thyrsites throughout British Columbia, leading to an elevated risk of reduced fillet quality. The cost to the BC farmed Atlantic Salmon industry was over $15 million in 2010, adding to the difficulty for the BC industry to remain competitive in the global salmon market. Early screening of farmed stock is now often used for Kudoa detection. Neither vaccines nor medicines are currently available for the prevention or treatment of the infection. An earlier ACRDP project demonstrated the efficacy of dietary Nicarbazin, a compound used to prevent coccidiosis in poultry, against K. thyrsites in Atlantic Salmon. The present study will use laboratory-reared Atlantic Salmon to compare the efficacy of Nicarbazin and ultraviolet irradiation of seawater against K. thyrsites, and to obtain data relating to the longevity of Nicarbazin in Atlantic Salmon tissues following cessation of treatment.

Program Name

Aquaculture Collaborative Research and Development Program (ACRDP)

Year(s)

2011 - 2012

Ecoregion(s)

Pacific: Vancouver Island West Coast

Principal Investigator(s)

Simon Jones
Email: Simon.Jones@dfo-mpo.gc.ca