Fish biologics: vaccine standards for sport fisheries and commercial aquaculture
Anderson, D.P.; Dixon, O.W.; Simon, R.C.
Developments in Biological Standardization 45: 157-162
1980
ISSN/ISBN: 0301-5149 PMID: 6995216 Document Number: 165756
Biologics for serodiagnostic identification of fish disease agents and for determination of efficacy and potency of fish bacterins are now being offered on a limited basis to governmental hatchery biologists and commercial aquaculture farms by the National Fish Health Research Laboratory - Leetown. Difficulties arise when biologics are used for determining standard parameters for fish bacterins because there may be variations in the fishes' immune response due to population differences or effects of temperature and pollutants in the aquatic environment. The passive haemolytic plaque assay and passive haemagglutination tests are used to determine efficacy and potency of bacterins delivered by different routes and among batches of bacterins against fish disease agents or Aeromonas salmonicida (furunculosis) and Yersinia ruckeri (redmouth). The kinetics of the immune response with a defined population held in a standardized environment is established. The development of a rainbow trout strain registry is recommended so that consistency can be maintained for the standardization of biologics for fishes.