In 1999, examination of soft-shell clam (Mya arenaria) mortalities at an experimental lease on Prince Edward Island (PEI) revealed a 95% prevalence of advanced haemic neoplasia (leukaemia). Low prevalences of this condition had been documented previously in soft-shell clams from Nova Scotia and the ...

Spatial growth variation of experimentally cultured blue mussels Mytilus edulis in Tracadie Bay, Prince Edward Island, Canada, was consistent in both years of a 2 yr study. The spatial pattern displayed reduced tissue growth along a gradient of decreasing tidal exchange from the inlet mouth to the i...

The study of protein function in neurons has been hindered by the lack of highly efficient, nontoxic methods of inducing RNA interference in such cells. Here we show that application of synthetic small interfering RNA( siRNA) linked to the vector peptide Penetratin1 results in rapid, highly efficien...

With the increasing spread of invasive marine species and their detrimental effects on aquaculture operations globally, mitigation strategies need to be optimized to mitigate economic impacts. The efficacy of a potassium monopersulphonate triple salt based disinfectant used in the aquaculture indust...

The aetiology of haemic neoplasia (HN) is unknown, so far but many causative factors are suggested such as viral, pollution and genetics. The aim of this study was to determine if, under chronic exposure, two major pesticides (chlorothalonil and mancozeb) which are used in potato production could in...

G28-5 sFv-PE40 is a single-chain immunotoxin targeted to CD40, which is highly expressed on human hematologic malignancies, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, B-lineage leukemias, multiple myeloma, and Hodgkin's disease, as well as certain carcinomas. In vitro analysis showed that this monovalent imm...

Owners of 141 dairy herds who used the Dairy Herd Improvement Association's database for keeping production and reproduction records were interviewed to describe the location of fans, shade structures, and sprinklers on their farms. Production and reproduction data were retrieved from the database, ...

A project initiated in October, 2000 at the Atlantic Veterinary College and Pacific Biological Station (PBS) assessed the health/disease issues relevant to the culture of indigenous shellfish species. This project included a thorough geographic survey of infections affecting the Stimpson's bar clam ...

Four hundred eighty mature marine mussels (Mytilus edulis) were collected in late April from a mussel lease in an estuary in Prince Edward Island, Canada. Squash preparations made of reproductive gland (mantle) tissue of each mussel were stained with Wright-Giemsa stain and were examined by one inve...

We describe 4 years of an experimental rotation in ecosystem health offered to senior veterinary students in Canada. Faculty from the 4 Canadian veterinary colleges collaborated in offering the rotation once annually at 1 of the colleges. The 1st rotation was held in Guelph in 1993, followed in succ...

Anecdotal reports from mussel growers suggest that increased stocking density decreases the settlement and growth of the fouling organisms Styela clava (clubbed tunicate) and Ciona intestinalis (vase tunicate). To evaluate this hypothesis, 15 mussel socks of low (90 mussels per 30 cm), medium (250 m...

In 2004, an exotic tunicate, Ciona intestinalis, was detected in Montague River, Prince Edward Island. Since it was first detected, this exotic species has become an invasive nuisance species creating production problems in bivalve aquaculture industries including handling difficulties and resource ...

The first confirmed report of the invasive solitary ascidian Styela clava (clubbed tunicate) in the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis)
production area of March Water in Malpeque Bay, Prince Edward Island (PEI), occurred in September of 2002. Mussel farms in
eastern PEI waters have been challenge...

A colorimetric method (glucose oxidase/peroxidase) for indirect measurement of glycogen concentrations in tissue homogenates of marine mussels (Mytilus edulis) was evaluated. This method uses a conversion of glycogen to glucose by amyloglucosidase. Varying the buffer pH (4.5, 5.0; 5.5) and the amylo...

A colorimetric method for indirect measurement of glycogen concentrations in tissue homogenates of eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica) was evaluated. This method uses a conversion of glycogen to glucose by amyloglucosidase. The procedure was optimized Fur extracting buffer pH (5.0) and amylogluc...

The epidemiology and importance of coagulase negative staphylococcal (CNS) mastitis in Prince Edward Island had not been documented. To investigate this, a cohort of 84 cows at seven farms were quarter sampled eight times over a lactation, commencing with samples taken prior to drying off in the pre...

Since all retroviruses possess reverse transcriptase (RT) enzyme, reverse transcriptase activity has been the main supportive evidence of retroviral etiology of haemic neoplasia (HN) in soft shell clams, Mya arenaria. The objective of the present study was to search for a putative retrovirus in vari...

This report describes the first 4 years of an experimental rotation in ecosystem health offered to senior veterinary students in Canada. Faculty from the 4 Canadian veterinary colleges collaborated in offering the rotation once annually at one of the colleges. The first rotation was held in Guelph, ...

Invasive species such as ascidians have negative effects on aquaculture operations worldwide. Prince Edward Island, Canada, in particular has seen high fouling levels of non-native tunicates including the colonials Botryllus schlosseri and Botrylloides violaceus. Previous research indicated that hig...

Diagnosis of haemic neoplasia (HN) in the soft shell clam, Mya arenaria, is often achieved by hematocytology and histology. Since neoplastic cells display tetraploid DNA contents, haemocyte cell cycle analysis was developed for use as a diagnosis tool. The aim of this study was to assess the applica...