A systematic surveillance programme for infectious salmon anaemia virus supports its absence in the Pacific Northwest of the United States.
L L Gustafson, L H Creekmore, K R Snekvik, J A Ferguson, J V Warg, M Blair, T R Meyers, B Stewart, K I Warheit, J Kerwin, A E Goodwin, L D Rhodes, J E Whaley, M K Purcell, C Bentz, D Shasa, J Bader, J R Winton
Author Information
L L Gustafson: USDA, APHIS, VS, Fort Collins, CO, USA. ORCID
L H Creekmore: USDA, APHIS, VS, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
K R Snekvik: Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA.
J A Ferguson: Fish Pathology Laboratory, Division of Commercial Fisheries, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Anchorage, AK, USA.
J V Warg: USDA, APHIS, VS, Ames, IA, USA.
M Blair: USFWS Idaho Fish Health Center, Orofino, ID, USA.
T R Meyers: Twin Lakes Fish Pathology Laboratory, Division of Commercial Fisheries, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Juneau, AK, USA.
B Stewart: Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, Olympia, WA, USA.
K I Warheit: Fish Program, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Olympia, WA, USA.
J Kerwin: Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Olympia, WA, USA.
A E Goodwin: Pacific Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Portland, OR, USA.
L D Rhodes: National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, Seattle, WA, USA.
J E Whaley: National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, Silver Spring, MD, USA.
M K Purcell: USGS Western Fisheries Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA. ORCID
C Bentz: Fish Pathology Laboratory, Division of Commercial Fisheries, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Anchorage, AK, USA.
D Shasa: USDA, APHIS, VS, Fort Collins, CO, USA.
J Bader: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, Falls Church, VA, USA.
J R Winton: USGS Western Fisheries Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA.
In response to reported findings of infectious salmon anaemia virus (ISAV) in British Columbia (BC), Canada, in 2011, U.S. national, state and tribal fisheries managers and fish health specialists developed and implemented a collaborative ISAV surveillance plan for the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Accordingly, over a 3-1/2-year period, 4,962 salmonids were sampled and successfully tested by real-time reverse-transcription PCR. The sample set included multiple tissues from free-ranging Pacific salmonids from coastal regions of Alaska and Washington and farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) from Washington, all representing fish exposed to marine environments. The survey design targeted physiologically compromised or moribund animals more vulnerable to infection as well as species considered susceptible to ISAV. Samples were handled with a documented chain of custody and testing protocols, and criteria for interpretation of test results were defined in advance. All 4,962 completed tests were negative for ISAV RNA. Results of this surveillance effort provide sound evidence to support the absence of ISAV in represented populations of free-ranging and marine-farmed salmonids on the northwest coast of the United States.
