More results create more questions for suspect ISA findings
BCSFA, November 2, 2011
Results from two more rounds of sampling are casting further questions on suspect findings of Infectious Salmon Anemia (ISA) in British Columbia.
Released on Wednesday, reports from the University of Bergen (Norway) and from the Prince Edward Island lab run by Dr. Fred Kibenge both show additional positives and both raise serious questions about those positive results. Despite what some activists may claim, ISA has not been confirmed in British Columbia.
In the case of the Dr. Are Nylund at the University of Bergen, 48 samples were run with one coming back as a weak positive result (see the report here). When that sample was re-run - another 32 times - the already-delicate positive result could never be reproduced. That is, the two original samples that had tested positive in results released weeks ago, tested negative at the Bergen lab.
In an interview, Dr. Nylund says specifically that it cannot be concluded from his results that ISAv has been detected in BC. He added that the test material was of poor quality when it was received and nothing in these results tells us whether this has any impact on wild or farmed salmon.
Results from Dr. Kibenge's lab show positives in three of 20 samples tested. One of three tested positive of the European genotype. But this time Dr. Kibenge includes in his notes some important qualifiers for the public: namely that these results do not mean that the fish had ISA or ISAv or that either is present in the area where the subject fish came from. For confirmation, the virus needs to be isolated - testing that is underway but will take another six weeks. He adds also that his laboratory had no participation in the collection of these samples or in their custody prior to receiving them - which means they cannot guarantee the integrity of them (see the report here).
These results raise important questions about the initial results publicized by Simon Fraser University on Oct. 17. While BC's salmon farmers remain concerned about the possibility of ISAv being in British Columbia, this recent news highlights the importance of good procedures and solid science before announcements such as that made a few weeks ago.
While we are still awaiting the results of follow-up testing on those original samples, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans and Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said in a statement: "After initial investigations, we are concerned that proper protocols may not have been followed in the testing and reporting of these findings."
We continue to urge the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to complete and release results of their testing as soon as possible. Our farmers could be negatively affected if this virus is here - as research shows that Atlantic salmon are highly susceptible to the disease while Pacific salmon are relatively immune to it.
What we do know clearly is that nearly 5,000 samples tested from our farms have all been negative for ISA. We know ISA is not present on our farms. Our farmers have offered to provide further samples for testing by CFIA and are advocating for more sampling and testing of our region's wild fish: a surveillance program that is timely, organized, responsible to the public and appreciable to a wider scientific community.
Many questions still remain and we urge the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to provide conclusive results soon.
