We describe a new method for detecting isolates of Vibrio parahaemolyticus that cause acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND). This method is based on the gene sequence of a protein discovered in a sub-fraction of cell-free culture broth from isolates of V. parhaemolyticus that cause AHPND, but not from V. parahaemolyticus or other bacteria that do not cause AHPND. This cell-free preparation caused the typical signs of acute AHPND when administered to shrimp by reverse gavage. 

The disease crisis facing shrimp aquaculture may be propelled, in part, by an interaction between management practices that cause inbreeding, and the amplification by inbreeding of susceptibility to disease and environmental stresses. The study describes and numerically simulates gene flow from Penaeus (Litopenaeus) vannamei hatcheries that employ a ‘Breeder Lock’ to discourage use of their PL as breeders, through ‘copy hatcheries’ that breed the locked PL, to inbred shrimp in farm ponds. 

Raising awareness of the link between genetics and disease will be addressed by the global aquaculture community at a special session on regional cooperation for improved biosecurity on 11 June at World Aquaculture Adelaide 2014. Aquatic animal health issues cause massive losses in the aquaculture industry each year. It is estimated that across the global tropical shrimp industry alone around 40% of production is lost to disease.

A Google Group on AHPND detection has been established to promote communication about the two AHPND detection methods (AP1 and AP2) that Dr Chu-Fang Lo and Dr Tim Flegel announced on 24 December 2013. The purpose of the group is to allow people using the methods to send in their comments and experiences about use of these two methods and other methods that might be developed.

The 25th Governing Council Meeting was convened from 25-27 March 2014 in the Mercure Hotel, Vientiane, Lao PDR. The meeting was attended by 17 member governments, the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), INFOFISH, the Mekong River Commission (MRC), the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC) and the USAID MARKET Project.