PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Helping fish get rid of the 'Ich'

2010-10-29
(Press-News.org) Copper sulfate has emerged as an effective treatment for Ichthyophthirius multifiliis, also known as "Ich," a protozoan parasite that appears as white spots on infected fish, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientist.

Aquatic toxicologist David Straus with USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) investigated copper sulfate as a method to control both Ich in catfish and a fungus—Saprolegnia—on catfish eggs. Straus works at the ARS Harry K. Dupree Stuttgart National Aquaculture Research Center in Stuttgart, Ark. ARS is the chief intramural scientific research agency of USDA, and this research supports the USDA priority of promoting international food security.

Ich is considered the most prevalent parasite worldwide in ornamental fish, baitfish and food fish, according to Straus. Ich is less common in U.S. aquaculture because of management techniques, but when it occurs, it can kill all the fish in a pond or raceway. It is calculated that Ich was directly responsible for $1.2 million in losses to the catfish industry in 2003.

The freshwater fungus Saprolegnia is another major pathogen in fish culture, killing eggs and invading wounds and lesions on juvenile and adult fish.

Straus found copper sulfate is an effective treatment for Ich on fish and fungus on eggs. According to Straus, copper sulfate is the only practical treatment to control Ich in catfish ponds that average about 10 acres in area. It is easy to use, effective and inexpensive, and is safe for the user to handle.

Current approved treatments for fungus on eggs, such as formalin and hydrogen peroxide, are much more expensive. Also, both compounds are hazardous, and there are human safety concerns as well as required storage precautions.

Copper sulfate is not currently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for therapeutic use in aquaculture, but regulatory action has been deferred pending the outcome of Straus' ongoing research. The chemical is approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as an algicide and molluscicide. Fish farmers use copper sulfate to control cyanobacteria that cause off-flavor in fish, and to control snails that transmit parasitic flatworms to fish.

INFORMATION:

Read more about this and other aquaculture-related research in the October 2010 issue of Agricultural Research magazine, available online at: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/oct10/fish1010.htm.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice), or (202) 720-6382 (TDD).

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

3 million Californians use health plans with high out-of-pocket costs

2010-10-29
Three million Californians are enrolled in high-deductible health plans, insurance policies that offer consumers a lower monthly premium in return for higher out-of-pocket spending for health care services, according to a new report from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. These health plans, which can impose deductibles of more than $5,000, may cause members to delay care and can put families in financial jeopardy should a health crisis arise, say the authors of the report, "Profiling California's Health Plan Enrollees: Findings from the 2007 California Health ...

New test measures DNA methylation levels to predict colon cancer

2010-10-29
PHILADELPHIA — An investigational DNA methylation test could alter the screening landscape for colorectal cancer, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research special conference on Colorectal Cancer: Biology to Therapy, held here Oct. 27-30, 2010. Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer, and the second leading cause of cancer mortality. While celebrities continue to undergo public colonoscopies in an effort to increase awareness, only 60 percent of adults age 50 and older have undergone recommended screening, according to ...

Scientists describe new approach for identifying genetic markers for common diseases

2010-10-29
La Jolla, CA, October 28, 2010 – For Immediate Release – A group of researchers at The Scripps Research Institute and the Scripps Translational Science Institute has published a paper that reviews new strategies for identifying collections of rare genetic variations that reveal whether people are predisposed to developing common conditions like diabetes and cancer. In our modern genetic age, the entire DNA sequences, or "genomes," of humans and thousands of other animals, plants, and microbial life forms have been completely decoded and are publicly available to scientists ...

Rictor protein offers scientists a new molecular target for cancer therapies

2010-10-29
BOSTON – The discovery that a protein called Rictor plays a key role in destroying a close cousin of the AKT oncogene could provide scientists with a new molecular target for treating certain cancers, including breast cancer. Described in the September 2010 issue of the journal Molecular Cell, the study was led by scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). The oncogenic cousin, known as SGK1, resembles the widely known AKT oncogene in structure, according to the study's senior author Wenyi Wei, PhD, of the Department of Pathology at BIDMC and Assistant ...

Insulin-creating cell research may lead to better diabetes treatment

2010-10-29
LIVERMORE, Calif. – Beta cells, which make insulin in the human body, do not replicate after the age of 30, indicating that clinicians may be closer to better treating diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is caused by a loss of beta cells by auto-immunity while type 2 is due to a relative insufficiency of beta cells. Whether beta cells replicate after birth has remained an open issue, and is critically important for designing therapies for diabetes. By using radioactive carbon-14 produced by above-ground nuclear testing in the 1950s and '60s, researchers have determined that the ...

Organic solvent system may improve catalyst recycling and create new nanomedicine uses

Organic solvent system may improve catalyst recycling and create new nanomedicine uses
2010-10-29
Noble metals such as platinum and palladium are becoming increasingly important because of growth in environmentally friendly applications such as fuel cells and pollution control catalysts. But the world has limited quantities of these materials, meaning manufacturers will have to rely on efficient recycling processes to help meet the demand. Existing recycling processes use a combination of two inorganic acids known as "aqua regia" to dissolve noble metals, a class of materials that includes platinum, palladium, gold and silver. But because the metals are often dissolved ...

A recent IRCM breakthrough impacts cancer research

2010-10-29
Montreal, October 28, 2010 – A team of scientists at the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM) led by Dr. Jean-François Côté, Director of the Cytoskeletal Organization and Cell Migration research unit, identified a novel molecular mechanism in the control of cell motility. Their findings were published online today in Current Biology, a journal from the Cell Press group. This scientific breakthrough could eventually lead to the development of new cancer-treating drugs that could block the spread of tumours (metastasis). "As many as 90% of cancer patient ...

Spacecraft will enable scientists to study space environment around moon, Earth

2010-10-29
Two spacecraft are now beginning to study the moon's environment as part of NASA's ARTEMIS mission, whose principal investigator is Vassilis Angelopoulos, a UCLA professor of Earth and space sciences. One of these satellites has been in the lunar environment since Aug. 25, and the second arrived Oct. 22, marking the start of the ARTEMIS mission to gather new scientific data in the sun-Earth-moon environment. ARTEMIS is an acronym for Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun. For roughly six months, the ...

Immigrant Latinos in rural Illinois have unique child care needs

2010-10-29
URBANA – Finding good child care and being able to engage easily in important interactions with your child care provider are critical to any mother's ability to work outside the home. "Suppose you're living in the rural Midwest and you don't speak English very well. Can you imagine leaving your child with a child care provider if you couldn't communicate well with that person?" said Angela Wiley, a University of Illinois associate professor of applied family studies. "The immigrant moms we interviewed for this study faced just this dilemma," she said. Immigrant Latino ...

Newly discovered regulatory mechanism essential for embryo development and may contribute to cancer

2010-10-29
Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have identified a mechanism controlling the function of a protein that binds to DNA during embryonic development and may function to prevent abnormal tumor growth. When the protein, TCF3, is modified by a small molecule called a phosphate, it no longer binds DNA, changing the way the protein signals during development. This discovery identifies a new diagnostic marker (phosphorylated TCF3) that may be associated with cancer and could represent a potential drug target. The results are published in the current issue of Developmental ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Study unexpectedly finds living in rural, rather than urban environments in first five years of life could be a risk factor for developing type 1 diabetes

Editorial urges deeper focus on heart-lung interactions in pulmonary vascular disease

Five University of Tennessee faculty receive Fulbright Awards

5 advances to protect water sources, availability

OU Scholar awarded Fulbright for Soviet cinema research

Brain might become target of new type 1 diabetes treatments

‘Shore Wars:’ New research aims to resolve coastal conflict between oysters and mangroves, aiding restoration efforts

Why do symptoms linger in some people after an infection? A conversation on post-acute infection syndromes

Study reveals hidden drivers of asthma flare-ups in children

Physicists decode mysterious membrane behavior

New insights about brain receptor may pave way for next-gen mental health drugs

Melanoma ‘sat-nav’ discovery could help curb metastasis

When immune commanders misfire: new insights into rheumatoid arthritis inflammation

SFU researchers develop a new tool that brings blender-like lighting control to any photograph

Pups in tow, Yellowstone-area wolves trek long distances to stay near prey

AI breakthrough unlocks 'new' materials to replace lithium-ion batteries

Making molecules make sense: A regional explanation method reveals structure–property relationships

Partisan hostility, not just policy, drives U.S. protests

The Journal of Nuclear Medicine Ahead-of-Print Tip Sheet: August 1, 2025

Young human blood serum factors show potential to rejuvenate skin through bone marrow

Large language models reshape the future of task planning

Narrower coverage of MS drugs tied to higher relapse risk

Researchers harness AI-powered protein design to enhance T-cell based immunotherapies

Smartphone engagement during school hours among US youths

Online reviews of health care facilities

MS may begin far earlier than previously thought

New AI tool learns to read medical images with far less data

Announcing XPRIZE Healthspan as Tier 5 Sponsor of ARDD 2025

Announcing Immortal Dragons as Tier 4 Sponsor of ARDD 2025

Reporting guideline for chatbot health advice studies

[Press-News.org] Helping fish get rid of the 'Ich'