By Jeff Schaeffer | AFS Co-Chief Science Editor. E-mail: [email protected]

Fish culturists struggle constantly with preventing and treating disease, but one helpful trend is the development of assays that can provide rapid diagnostics so that disease presence can be verified or treated. Saranya Plaon and colleagues at the Srinakharinwirot University (Thailand) present a great look at the process by which an assay for Vibrio bacteria was developed and evaluated, and compared it to other techniques. Their approach promises to be faster and more sensitive, at least for a portion of the bacteria they examined. But they also present data on the bacteria for which it did not work, which is just as important as knowing the species it is useful for. Their work is an objective and detailed look at this topic and demonstrates not only progress but how fish health practitioners develop novel approaches.

REFERENCE Plaon, S., S. Longyant, P. Sithigorngul, and P. Chaivisuthangkura. 2015. Rapid and sensitive detection of Vibrio alginolyticus by loop-mediated isothermal amplification combined with a lateral flow dipstick targeted to the rpoX gene. Journal of Aquatic Animal Health. 27:156-163. dx.doi.org/10.1080/08997659.2015.1037468

Members click below for the October 2015 Fisheries magazine’s complete issue. Non-members, join here.