A 2006 Survey of Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHSV) Virus type IVb in New York State Waters

From 8 August to 5 December 2006, 1011 individual fish representing twenty species from nineteen different bodies of water throughout New York State were collected and tested by conventional cell culture and viral identification techniques for the presence of Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Virus (VHSV). All samples were also tested using a newly developed quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assay. The sampling took place in bodies of water identified by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) as “priority bodies of water” due to the potentially high impact an outbreak of VHSV would have in these waters. Conventional methods returned positive results for two of the twenty fish species: bluntnose minnows (Pimephales notatus) and emerald shiners (Notropis artherinoides) from three of the nineteen bodies of water. Quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) detected VHSV in eight species from eleven bodies of water suggesting greater sensitivity in detecting this pathogen.

Research Highlights
► The prevalence of VHSV type IVb in New York State waters was determined in 2006.
► Samples were tested using both conventional and qRT-PCR techniques.
► VHSV type IVb was detected in 2 fish species and 3 locations by conventional methods.
► VHSV type IVb was detected in 8 species from 11 locations by qRT-PCR methods.