Real-time PCR and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) were evaluated as rapid methods for the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis and compared to standard diagnostic procedures. For PCR, a LightCycler approach was chosen, implementing eubacterial and specific PCR assays for the most relevant bacteria. For FISH, a similar probe set containing eubacterial and specific probes was composed of p...

The objectives of the present study were to compare growth performance and feed conversion ratios of brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and Black Sea trout (Salmo trutta labrax) in monoculture and duo-culture tank reared conditions. The fish were about 9-month-old hatchery reared brook trout and Black Sea trout with initial weights of 24.18±0.64 (n=60) and 23.87±1.11 (n=60) g, respectively. Fi...

Fish that are colored in nature often acquire faded coloration under intensive culture conditions. Experiments adding top-coated algae to the diets of ornamental fish have resulted in color enhancement. Freshwater red velvet swordtails Xiphophorus helleri, rainbowfish Pseudomugil furcatus, and topaz cichlids Cichlasoma myrnae became significantly more intensely colored when fed a diet containin...

Group B streptococci (GBS) are the most frequent pathogens in neonates with sepsis. A rapid screening method is required to identify carriage of GBS in pregnant women at the time of delivery. In order to detect GBS in vaginal specimens, the efficiency of the standard culture versus fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) was investigated. In 258 examined vaginal specimens, FISH identified 58 o...

Piscirickettsia salmonis is the etiologic agent of piscirickettsiosis, an economically significant disease of fish. Isolation of P. salmonis by culturing on fish cell lines has been the standard technique since the initial isolation of the organism. The ability to grow P. salmonis on artificial media would relieve facilities of the cost of maintaining cell lines, permit isolation at fish cultur...

An experiment was conducted to determine the impact of fish and prawn culture on some physicochemical parameters of water, weeds, benthos, and rice yield under simultaneous method for a period of 5 months from July to November 2007. The experiment was comprised of five individual treatments having three replicates for each. The treatments were: rice combined with fish and regular urea fertiliza...

  This study was done to investigate of some hematological and biochemical factors of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss ) fry in west of Mazandaran in Iran. About 50 pools of blood samples from diseased fry were collected within 30 months from November 2002 till March 2005 from three hatchery farms in western part of Mazanderan province. In addition 30 pools of blood samples as control group w...

Traditionally, the bacteriological examination of mastitis milk samples is performed by culture followed by biochemical tests on the cultured bacteria to allow identification of the causative pathogen. Depending on the species involved, this classic identification is time-consuming compared to other techniques such as fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), a culture-independent method that u...

X-cell epidermal lesions are described from a single specimen of the hardhead catfish Anus felis (Ariidae). The lesions exhibited a n unusual growth pattern but did not involve any visceral organs. Histologically, the lesions resembled those previously described for coldwater f~shes . This is the first report of X-cell lesions from Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana, USA, and the hardhead catfish re...

Climatic variations are known to engender life-history diversification of species and populations at large spatial scales. However, the extent to which microgeographic variations in climate (e.g., those occurring within a single large ecosystem) can also drive life-history divergence is generally poorly documented. We exploited a spatial gradient in water temperatures at three sites across a la...