AQUACULTURE
Fish Health and Welfare
For further information on the Fish Health and Welfare Group, contact
aquaculture@stir.ac.uk or tel +44 (0)1786 467874“The main focus of thislarge multi-disciplinarygroup is the prevention
and control of disease,involving scientists andveterinarians withexpertise in pathology,immunology,parasitology, virology,bacteriology,epidemiology andwelfare. Much of theresearch involves
biotechnology andaspects of foodsecurity”

Aquatic Vaccine Unit: Research in the Aquatic Vaccine Unit
focuses on fish disease control through the development of novelvaccines and rapid diagnostic tests (both molecular and antibodybased). Many of the projects are in collaboration with industry andvaccines are currently being developed to control Rainbow Trout Fry
Syndrome, Francisellosis, Sea lice and Amoebic Gill Disease.
Our work also includes more fundamental immunology research,
including elucidating mechanisms of mucosal immunity and the effects
of dietary components, immunostimulants and probiotics on theimmune system and fish health. Many of these projects hinge on theelucidation of host pathogen interactions. Microarray analysis is being
increasingly used to investigate immune gene regulation during
infection, following vaccination and immunomodulation by dietarycomponents. Various new projects have also been initiated withregard to behavioural ecology, evolution and immunity. We work on awide range of fish species and pathogens (bacterial, viral, parasiticand fungal).

Virology Group: The Virology Group has historically performed
diagnostics using traditional cell culture assays. Current reorganisationand future aims include optimising virus culture of fish viruses byimproving culture techniques using up to 70 available cell lines thathave been collected over decades. We also have an interest in
developing cell lines from molluscs and crustaceans.
We are continuing to develop rapid molecular detection assays for fishviruses and exploring their use in an aquaculture farm setting. For
most viral diseases affecting fish, molluscs and crustaceans the use ofmodern point of care molecular assays in an aquaculture setting havenot been explored. There is also a lack of clinical thresholds for the
mostly ubiquitous viruses, which need to be determined in order tomake the use of such tests efficient and reliable. A sound sequence
dataset is the basis for molecular methods and therefore NGS
methods will be developed to sequence existing and incoming virus
isolates and samples. We are looking for co-operations to explore theevolution of fish viruses in the fish farm setting in order to find answers
on how some viruses evade and brake through vaccine control.
Current research is focusing on Pancreas Disease (PD) with a view toimprovement in vaccination, breeding programmes and nutritional
modification. This disease caused by salmonid alphavirus (SAV) has
become one of the main disease concerns for Atlantic salmon. Themechanisms responsible for viral tissue tropism and tissue pathology
caused by the disease are not clearly described and this is also underinvestigation.

RESEARCH THAT SHAPES AND IMPROVES LIVESThe University of Stirling is a charity registered in Scotland, number SC 011159

Bacteriology Group: The Bacteriology Group collaborates widelywith academics and commercial organizations worldwide, to identify
bacterial pathogens of significance that impact on the production ofsustainable aquaculture. We take a comprehensive approach tounderstanding aquatic bacterial infections, which range from simple
pathogen identification to classification of virulence factors associatedwith disease outbreaks and understanding zoonosis through molecular
microbial epidemiology research. Our research has highlighted genetic
antibiotic resistance mechanisms and identified novel pathogens
associated with emerging disease conditions leading to production ofefficacious vaccines. Characterising the composition and role of the
fish microbiome during production is a key area of our research. More
The close ties between recently we have expanded our research capacity to investigate
the Fish Health andmicrobial safety of aquatic seafood, particularly concentrating on those
Welfare Group and the organisms that cause foodborne illness in humans.

aquaculture industry
mean that the research Alternative insect infection models for investigating mechanisms ofpathogenicity and virulence factor discovery in bacterial fish pathogens
often has applied
are being developed in the group as an alternative to fish models.
aspects that lead toResearch on novel bioactive natural marine products is also underway.
immediate benefits inthe control andParasitology Group: The Parasitology Group has a worldwide
management ofreputation for research and innovation in the field of aquatic
disease both inparasitology. Its aims are to consider not only the interactions between
industrial and artisanal parasite and host but also the wider environmental aspects of thisaquaculture andrelationship. This has led to a broad spectrum of research interests. At
recreational fisheries.
one end of this spectrum lie studies investigating parasite biology,
The Group collaborates morphology, physiology and host-parasite interactions including
with a range ofpathology, host defence mechanisms and host specificity. At the otherend of the spectrum are studies investigating the epidemiology andacademic andgovernment institutions macro-distribution of parasites, their population dynamics and their
responses to environmental factors such as climatic, hydrodynamic
worldwide.
and chemical parameters.

Sea lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) remain a major research focus
with projects underway to develop a sea lice vaccine, an artificial skinmodel, and to investigate the factors affecting the susceptibility ofAtlantic salmon to infection. There is also much interest in
Gyrodactylus salaris, a parasite that has had a devastating impact on
Norwegian Atlantic salmon populations, looking at the susceptibility ofnative salmonids, mathematical modelling and predicting theestablishment and spread G. salaris, in the UK.
Population Health and Welfare: The Aquatic Population Health andWelfare group evolved from our research in aquatic animal
epidemiology and welfare. We collaborate with staff from Aquaculture
and other departments in Stirling and have active links with 28
academic and commercial organisations worldwide. The group uses
population based models and analysis to answer a wide range ofquestions from applied control of specific diseases, through methods
to monitor welfare to theoretical network modelling.

www.aqua.stir.ac.uk
RESEARCH THAT SHAPES AND IMPROVES LIVESThe University of Stirling is a charity registered in Scotland, number SC 011159