Lecture 1

Question 1

Why do we need to sample?

Answer 1

Disease outbreaks and fish kills

Question 2

What is the OiE

Answer 2

World organisation for animal health

Question 3

Where is the OiE located

Answer 3

Paris

Question 4

What are most of the current OIE-listed fish diseases

Answer 4

Viral

Question 5

What is AQUAVETPLAN stand for

Answer 5

The Australian Aquatic Veterinary Emergency Plan

Question 6

What is. AQUAVETPLAN

Answer 6

A series of manuals that outline Australia’s approach to national disease preparedness and proposes the technical response and control strategies to be activated in a national aquatic animal disease emergency

Question 7

What is the most intel test for diagnosis

Answer 7

Histopathy

Question 8

What does the presence of bacterial infection not exclude

Answer 8

Viruses

Question 9

What can both bacterial and fungal infections cause

Answer 9

Erosion which can be problematic because of contamination of samples from organisms in the environment

Question 10

What type of fish should be submitted where possible for diagnosis

Answer 10

Live fish

Question 11

Where live fish aren’t possible what fish should be used

Answer 11

Euthanised and either cooled and dispatched on ice (NOT frozen) or samples cultured or fixed before dispatch

Question 12

What is the problem wish fish after death

Answer 12

Fish body temp alters to the conditions they are in, so after death their enzymes are still active causing rapid autolysis

Question 13

When toxins are expected what should be submitted

Answer 13

Live fish for general examination and exclusion but water sample should be included

Question 14

What are frozen fish useful for

Answer 14

Tocicological analysis and gross pathology

Question 15

What are fixes preserved specimens suitable for

Answer 15

Gross and histological examination including immunohistochemical staining but not for the isolation of pathogens

Question 16

When affected live fish or fish that are chilled very soon after death cannot reach the lab in suitable times what should be done

Answer 16

Samples for specific tests should be selected prior to dispatch

Question 17

Samples for bacterial culture should be inoculated directly onto culture, why is this and what should be done if this is not possible

Answer 17

Transport media may not support fish pathogens

Tissue from culture should be separated from non-sterile tissues such as the gut and skin

Question 18

If delays in virus culture are unavoidable what should be done

Answer 18

Samples for diagnostic virology can be held frozen at -20 degrees Celsius or below

Question 19

When taking history what should be asked

Answer 19

1. Affected fish populations
2. The cohorts
3. The environment

Question 20

What to ask in the history of farmed fish

Answer 20

1. Type of containment and time since establishment
2. Recent introduction or alterations or failures of water filtration or supply
3. Water and environmental data
4. Management data
5. Details of specimens submitted and analyses requested

Question 21

What should submissions for disease diagnosis from farmed fish

Answer 21

1. Submitter’s and owner’s name and address
2. Affected population data
3. Data on the disease

Question 22

When wild fish die what should be submitted

Answer 22

Fish samples and a variety of water samples

Question 23

What to submit the there is a wild fish kill of unknown cause

Answer 23

1. Estimated number fo affected and distressed fish
2. Type of species involved
3. Size range of affected fish
4. The area covered
5. Range of decomposition
6. Behaviour of distressed fish
7. Other aquatic animals affected?
8. Water data should be include a description of the type of waterway
9. Environmental data should include a description of the land use in the area, and the presence of any effluent or discharge
10. Weather conditions should be described

Question 24

Water samples are needed more often than equivalent environmental samples relating to mammals because

Answer 24

1. Limitations on oxygen concentrations in water and the factors that can further reduce this
2. Increased dependence of poikilotherms on environmental stability
3. The mixture of food, fish and pollutant waste in the fish’s respiratory environment

Question 25

When is oxygen bed measured

Answer 25

On site

Question 26

What should be measured in water quality

Answer 26

Salinity, presence or absence of toxic phytoplankton and jellyfish should be recorded in sea cages, while on land and in recirculation systems monitoring of additional parameters such as ammonia, nitrate and nitrite, water hardness and pH should be implemented

Question 27

What are the 4 methods of container preparation

Answer 27

1. General wash with deionised water for measurement of total dissolved solids, total suspend solids, dissolved oxygen, pH, biological oxygen demand and algae
2. An acid washer heavy metal measurements
3. An organic solvent wash such as hexane wash for measurement of hydrocarbons and pesticides
4. Sterilisation for microbiological sampling containers