Juvenile rainbow trout raised in a tank at the ARS National Center for Cool and Cold Water Aquaculture in Leetown, West Virginia.

Rapid Fish Tests Identify Risky Business

ARS researchers are helping the aquaculture industry with disease detection and management. Fish are known to suffer from a myriad of health problems during aquaculture production. Global losses to aquatic animal diseases exceed $6 billion USD annually. Multiple pathogens, poor water quality, and temperature stress cause health challenges for salmonoid fish. These factors can lead to decreased animal wellbeing and productivity. Fish farmers, or aquaculture farmers, need faster methods to assess important aquaculture traits.  ARS researchers in Leetown, WV, have addressed this by identifying new biomarkers, which are measurable indicators of health and disease. Learn more...

The Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency. Daily, ARS focuses on solutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in agricultural research results in $20 of economic impact.