Managing aquatic parasites for reduced drug resistance: lessons from the land

Overview
TitleManaging aquatic parasites for reduced drug resistance: lessons from the land
AuthorsMcEwan GF, Groner ML, Burnett DL, Fast MD, Revie CW
TypeJournal Article
Journal NameJournal of the Royal Society, Interface
Volume13
Issue125
Year2016
Page(s)N/A
CitationMcEwan GF, Groner ML, Burnett DL, Fast MD, Revie CW. Managing aquatic parasites for reduced drug resistance: lessons from the land. Journal of the Royal Society, Interface. 2016 Dec; 13(125).

Abstract

Atlantic salmon farming is one of the largest aquaculture industries in the world. A major problem in salmon farms is the sea louse ectoparasite Lepeophtheirus salmonis, which can cause stress, secondary infection and sometimes mortality in the salmon host. Sea lice have substantial impacts on farm economics and potentially nearby wild salmonid populations. The most common method of controlling sea louse infestations is application of chemicals. However, most farming regions worldwide have observed resistance to the small set of treatment chemicals that are available. Despite this, there has been little investigation of treatment strategies for managing resistance in aquaculture. In this article, we compare four archetypical treatment strategies inspired by agriculture, where the topic has a rich history of study, and add a fifth strategy common in aquaculture. We use an agent-based model (ABM) to simulate these strategies and their varying applications of chemicals over time and space. We analyse the ABM output to compare how the strategies perform in controlling louse abundance, number of treatments required and levels of resistance in the sea louse population. Our results indicated that among the approaches considered applying chemicals in combination was the most effective over the long term.

Author Details
Additional information about authors:
Details
1Gregor F McEwan
2Maya L Groner
3Danielle L Burnett
4Mark D Fast
5Crawford W Revie
Properties
Additional details for this publication include:
Property NameValue
Publication ModelPrint
ISSN1742-5662
eISSN1742-5662
Publication Date2016 Dec
Journal AbbreviationJ R Soc Interface
PII20160830
Elocation10.1098/rsif.2016.0830
DOI10.1098/rsif.2016.0830
Copyright© 2016 The Author(s).
LanguageEnglish
Language Abbreng
Publication TypeJournal Article
Journal CountryEngland
Cross References
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DatabaseAccession
PMID: PMID:28003529