Developing a Furunculosis vaccine for Bay D’Espoir
The Newfoundland Salmonid Growers
Association (NSGA), in partnership with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), is
currently working on a new vaccine to combat Furunculosis in farmed salmon and trout in
the Bay D’Espoir region. Furuculosis in Newfoundland is caused by an atypical strain
of the bacterium Aeromonas salmonicida. This atypical strain has also been found
in British Columbia, Norway and Iceland, but isolates from each of these regions
have show subtle differences in the strain. It is believed these differences may be large enough to limit the effectiveness of the vaccine in Bay D’Espoir. To date, results from existing commercially-available vaccines, such as Lippogen Forte and Lippogen Tripple, have not been entirely satisfactory to Newfoundland salmon grower.
In 2001, through funding from the Aquaculture Component of the Research and Development Program (ACRDP), the NSGA and DFO initiated a three-phase study to:
Phase 1 and 2 are being conducted at the Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC), in PEI. The project is under the guidance of Dr. Atef Mansour, DFA and Dr. Daryl Whalen, Regional Veterinarian, Animal Health Division.
Phase 1 of characterizing the bacterium is now complete. It has shown interesting results with respect to the number of plasmids present in the bacterium. Plasmids are an extra-chromosomal ring of DNA, especially of bacteria, that replicates autonomously. The number of plasmids in a bacterium are usually indicative of how effective the bacterium is against its host (usually with bacteria there are only 1 or 2). In the Bay D’Espoir strain of Furunculosis there are 4 – 12 plasmids, making the bacterium more resistant against the typical vaccines. Meanwhile, antibiotics for Furunculosis are only good in the short term, because of the high level of plasmids.
Phase 2 is expected to commence in early summer, pending ACRDP approval. Conducting the preliminary laboratory trials and clinical field trials to test an autogenous vaccine (i.e., modified commercial vaccine) will take a year or more. Modifications to vaccines can include change in antigen concentration or structural change. Currently, there are autogenous vaccines being produced elsewhere. Norwegian Lippogen Triple, for example, may work better against the Bay D’Espoir strain of Furunculosis than Lippogen Forte/Lippogen Tripple. The AVC will test available vaccines, and utilize immunostimulants along with vaccination.
The field trials in Bay D’Espoir, Phase 3, will follow thereafter.
Main | Affiliations/Partners | Funding Sources | Member Companies | Community Involvement | Projects | Articles | Coast of Bays | Where to Find Us
E-mail Us