TRACE AND TERMINATE SALMON GILL POXVIRUS: TRACEPOX

Due to the financial situation in NFR in 2022, the project was put on hold significantly in time. Before the postponement of activities a quest-back was sent to salmon hatcheries and 39 responses were received. On the 26th of April 2024 the prosject partners held an open workshop on salmon pox where amongst other the responses on the quest-back were presented and discussed At the workshop the results from the quest-back was presented and discussed resulting in valuable information sharing and updating on the status of knowledge regarding the virus and the problems it creates. A summary of the workshop was published as popular scientific article in Norsk Fiskeoppdrett (Norwegian Fish Farming) no. 5, 2022 by Brit Tørud and Mona Gjessing. The work to test the effect of disinfection with chlorine has been started in cooperation with project partner Xylem, and is now being expanded as from 1st of June 2024, a Postdoc researcher, Sun Baojian, are employed on the project. Further, a work to investigate the use of cell culture for several of the aims of the project has started. For method development regarding more sensitive detection methods and infection tracing, the collection of relevant material from business partners is now being organised. The other activities in the prosject will be started later.

Recent studies show that salmon gill poxvirus disease has a wide distribution, is a significant welfare problem and has a huge negative economical impact. The ongoing NRC fincanced project SALPOX has resulted in a successful experimental model recreating salmon gill poxvirus disease opening for studies that were previously impossible. Further, genotyping assay (MLVA), has been developed for studying the epizootiology of SGPV. This method has shown that within certain Norwegian fjord systems and individual freshwater salmon smolt farms in Norway, discrete MLVA clustering patterns that prevailed over time were observed. Many hatcheries experience recurrent outbreaks with SGPV disease, but despite screening of wild fish in the water sources and screening of hatcheries, we still do not know the reservoir of the virus or if salmon infected with SGPV become carriers of the SGPV. Apparently, as assessed from the results from pcr of gills form salmon that have survived an outbreak, they get rid of the virus. However, experiences from the field cannot rule out that such surviving salmon are in fact not shedding SGPV. TRACEPOX will benefit from support from MOWI ASA, SISOMAR AS, NOFIMA, Heilsufrøðiliga starvsstovan, Xylem, University of South- Eastern Norway as external partners and from already established platforms, SEC-TEQ where part of the aims is to provide tools for sequencing, more effective diagnostics and tracing and BioDirect focusing on establishment of biomarkers related to disease. TRACEPOX aims to find even more optimal ways to monitor and trace SGPV and to inactivate the virus, and thereby reduce losses and suffering caused by SGPV and secondary gill problems in the wake of SGPV. Further, to sharing experience on how to prevent a SGPVD outbreak and reduce suffering and death caused by SGPV.