Tag Stephen G. Newman

La prueba de PCR es una herramienta valiosa para detectar patógenos, cuando se lleva a cabo correctamente, pero depender únicamente de ella no es consistente con una bioseguridad adecuada. 

PCR testing is a valuable tool for detecting pathogens, when done correctly, but relying on it solely is not consistent with adequate biosecurity.      

Este artículo presenta resultados de pruebas de laboratorio y de campo para un parabiótico de propiedad en granjas de camarones blancos del Pacífico en América Latina y el Sudeste Asiático. 

This article presents lab and field test results for a proprietary parabiotic on Pacific white shrimp farms in Latin America and Southeast Asia. 

Los residuos de antibióticos en los camarones cultivados y la resistencia a los antimicrobianos en general representan una amenaza, pero debemos equilibrar lo que es realista y lo que es ideal. 

Antibiotic residues in farmed shrimp, and antimicrobial resistance in general, pose a threat, but we must balance what is realistic and what is ideal. 

En estas primeras etapas de comprensión de cómo los cambios en el microbioma afectan la salud animal, tenga cuidado al interpretar los resultados de laboratorio y cómo pueden aplicarse al mundo real. 

In these early stages of understanding how microbiome changes impact animal health, use caution in interpreting lab results and how they may apply to the real world. 

Strategies to control Vibrio bacteria at aquaculture farms must revolve around limiting inputs, including those from postlarvae suppliers, those that come in with the water, those that remain in the soil between crops and those in the feed and accumulated organic matter. 

Control of Vibrio bacteria should focus on minimizing overall bacterial loads and the potential for horizontal transmission. The challenge for hatchery managers is identifying gaps in biosecurity and plugging them without creating niches for other potential pathogens. 

Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP), a microsporidian parasite widely found in Asia and other areas, is impacting aquaculture by severely retarding the growth of cultured shrimp. EHP infects the tubules of the hepatopancreas in shrimp, which damages the organ’s ability to gain nutrition from feed. 

Biosecurity can be defined as the operating procedures that shrimp hatchery and farm personnel use to minimize the impacts of disease on their animals. Proper biosecurity measures slow the movement of pathogens and protect unaffected areas. 

Polymerase chain reaction testing is a powerful tool that can detect very low levels of pathogens, but its ability to screen and produce results that represent the population is often oversimplified. Screening of the wrong tissues or too few animals can lead to incorrect conclusions. 

The development of polymerase chain reaction testing to detect the bacteria that cause EMS is important, but confirmation by bioassay of presumptive positives to ensure pathogenicity is a prudent intermediate step. 

Ideally, farmers need to create conditions that make it harder for the pathogenic Vibrio that causes AHPN to colonize animals’ stomachs and for the toxin to produce its pathology. Exclusion where possible and appropriate management of ecosystems offer hope in addressing AHPN.