Marine Fish Health

Ichthyophonus spp. are perhaps the most economically and ecologically important parasites of wild marine fish in the world.

Researchers at that MMFS are experimentally determining the impacts of high PCB body burdens on the immunocompetency and disease susceptibility of Pacific herring.

Researchers at the MMFS are studying the immediate and delayed effects of petroleum hydrocarbon exposures to Pacific herring.

In the decades following the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (EVOS), it has become increasingly apparent that oil can be toxic at extremely low concentrations to developing fish embryos including herring, where some toxic phenotypes may be apparent during embryogenesis, but some are delayed until later in life. Therefore, acute and lingering oil may act as an insidious selective force within populations...

Using an approach that involves a combination of field- and laboratory-based studies, we are investigating fish health factors that may be contributing to the failed recovery of Pacific herring populations in Prince William Sound, AK. Field studies are providing infection and disease prevalence data to inform the population models, serological data that indicate the prior exposure history and...

Toxic chemical pollutants have been released into Puget Sound for decades by human activities. There’s a wide range of contaminants, from persistent compounds like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and flame retardants to contaminants of emerging concern. Aquatic species can be exposed to and accumulate contaminants, causing disease or disruption of biological processes like growth or reproduction...

Fish Parasite - Ichthyophonus hoferi

Fish Virus - Erythrocytic Necrosis Virus (ENV)

Fish Virus - Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Virus (VHSV)

Species Studied - Pacific Herring ( Clupea pallasii)

Species Studied - Pacific Halibut ( Hippoglossus stenolepis)

Fish Diseases - Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS)