Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
3.0
2.4
Journals
Fishes
Special Issues
Healthy Aquaculture and Disease Control
share announcement

Healthy Aquaculture and Disease Control

A special issue of Fishes (ISSN 2410-3888). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Aquaculture".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 September 2025 | Viewed by 1623

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yucong Huang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Fisheries, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, China
Interests: healthy culture; aquatic probiotics; epidemiology; vaccine development
Dr. Xiaohui Cai

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Marine Sciences, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou, China
Interests: innate immunity in fish; mechanism of pathogenic microorganisms
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Kian Ann Tan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Marine Science, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou, China
Interests: aquaculture; gonad development; molecular biology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aquatic products are globally acknowledged as a vital source of high-quality animal protein and an important part of the food supply, playing a key role in global food and nutrition security. Currently, aquaculture accounts for over 50% of fish production. However, aquatic animal health and disease have emerged as major constraints to sustainable aquaculture practices. To ensure the sustainable development of the aquaculture industry, it is imperative to prioritize healthy farming practices along with effective disease prevention and control measures. In recent years, remarkable progress has been made in the selection and breeding of excellent aquatic species, aquaculture environment regulation technology, aquaculture management technology, and disease control. However, healthy aquaculture still faces challenges, I am pleased to invite you to actively contribute to this Special Issue of Fishes entitled “Healthy Aquaculture and Disease Control”. This Special Issue aims to collect studies (original research articles, perspectives, reviews, and mini-reviews) that focus on the innovative healthy farming models, research and development of aquatic probiotics, plant extracts, immunomodulators, and vaccine development.

Dr. Yucong Huang
Dr. Xiaohui Cai
Dr. Kian Ann Tan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fishes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • healthy aquaculture
  • aquatic probiotics
  • plant extract
  • immunomodulator
  • vaccine

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

19 pages, 3707 KB  
Article
The Effect of a Polypeptide Based Vaccine on Fish Welfare and Infestation of Salmon Lice, Lepeophtheirus salmonis, in Sea Cages with Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar L.)
by Ragnar Nortvedt, Erik Dahl-Paulsen, Laura Patricia Apablaza Bizama, Amritha Johny and Erik Slinde
Fishes 2025, 10(8), 405; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes10080405 - 13 Aug 2025
Viewed by 306
Abstract
A new polypeptide vaccine towards salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) was given to experimental groups of 2 × 8000 Atlantic salmon parr (Salmo salar L.), following the vaccination of a total of 4 × 8000 parr with a common set of [...] Read more.
A new polypeptide vaccine towards salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) was given to experimental groups of 2 × 8000 Atlantic salmon parr (Salmo salar L.), following the vaccination of a total of 4 × 8000 parr with a common set of vaccines used in Norwegian aquaculture to prevent infestation in salmon growing at sea. The remaining 2 × 8000 salmon served as control. The trial was conducted at a sea farm research facility at Knappen-Solheim in Masfjorden, Norway. Natural infestation with sea lice were staged and counted once a week from January–December 2023. The infestation was never above two mature female lice per salmon, the maximum limit set specifically for the present trial by the Norwegian Food Safety Authorities, thus delousing with chemicals or other methods was avoided. Mortality, growth, feed consumption, sexual maturation, slaughter quality, and welfare quality parameters were not significantly different between vaccinated and control salmon. The effect size showed a moderate positive difference of 0.07 mature female salmon lice per salmon in favor of the vaccinated groups from a fish size above 600 g in May until November. All fish were slaughtered and marketed at a size of 5.8 kg (>83% superior quality). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aquaculture and Disease Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

21 pages, 2807 KB  
Article
Phage Therapy Enhances Survival, Immune Response, and Metabolic Resilience in Pacific White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) Challenged with Vibrio parahaemolyticus
by Chao Zeng, Long Qi, Chao-Li Guan, Yu-Lin Chang, Yu-Yun He, Hong-Zheng Zhao, Chang Wang, Yi-Ran Zhao, Yi-Chen Dong and Guo-Fang Zhong
Fishes 2025, 10(8), 366; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes10080366 - 30 Jul 2025
Viewed by 552
Abstract
Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND), caused by the bacterium Vibrio parahaemolyticus, is a major threat to global shrimp aquaculture. In this study, we evaluated the therapeutic effects of phage therapy in Litopenaeus vannamei challenged with AHPND-causing Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Phage application at [...] Read more.
Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND), caused by the bacterium Vibrio parahaemolyticus, is a major threat to global shrimp aquaculture. In this study, we evaluated the therapeutic effects of phage therapy in Litopenaeus vannamei challenged with AHPND-causing Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Phage application at various concentrations significantly improved shrimp survival, with the 1 ppm group demonstrating the highest survival rate. Enzymatic assays revealed that phage-treated shrimp exhibited enhanced immune enzyme activities, including acid phosphatase (ACP), alkaline phosphatase (AKP), and lysozyme (LZM). In addition, antioxidant defenses such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX), and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) significantly improved, accompanied by reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Serum biochemical analyses demonstrated marked improvements in lipid metabolism, particularly reductions in triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL), alongside higher levels of beneficial high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Transcriptomic analysis identified 2274 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), notably enriched in pathways involving fatty acid metabolism, peroxisome functions, lysosomes, and Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling. Specifically, phage treatment upregulated immune and metabolic regulatory genes, including Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), myeloid differentiation primary response protein 88 (MYD88), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR), indicating activation of innate immunity and antioxidant defense pathways. These findings suggest that phage therapy induces protective immunometabolic adaptations beyond its direct antibacterial effects, thereby providing an ecologically sustainable alternative to antibiotics for managing bacterial diseases in shrimp aquaculture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aquaculture and Disease Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 1106 KB  
Article
Antibacterial Activity, Antioxidant Capacity and Immune Gene Modulation of Six Medicinal Plants in CHSE-214 Cells
by Soo-Ji Woo, So-Sun Kim, Eun-Ji Jeon, Dong-Sung Lee and Na-Young Kim
Fishes 2025, 10(7), 313; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes10070313 - 1 Jul 2025
Viewed by 414
Abstract
This study evaluated the therapeutic potential of 70% ethanol extracts from six medicinal plants (Chenopodium album, Cassia tora, Cudrania tricuspidata, Dioscorea polystachya, Lonicera japonica, Solidago virgaurea subsp. gigantea) through their antibacterial, antioxidant, cytotoxic, and immunomodulatory activities, [...] Read more.
This study evaluated the therapeutic potential of 70% ethanol extracts from six medicinal plants (Chenopodium album, Cassia tora, Cudrania tricuspidata, Dioscorea polystachya, Lonicera japonica, Solidago virgaurea subsp. gigantea) through their antibacterial, antioxidant, cytotoxic, and immunomodulatory activities, targeting applications in aquaculture. All extracts exhibited potent antibacterial activity (MIC ≤ 10 μg/mL) against Aeromonas spp. and Photobacterium damselae subsp. damselae, but limited efficacy against Streptococcus parauberis. C. tricuspidata (CTR) and C. tora (CTO) demonstrated superior antioxidant activity (IC50 = 1292 μg/mL and IC50 = 227 μg/mL, respectively), correlating with high polyphenol content (1498 and 1409 mg GAE/g). CTR displayed significant concentration-dependent cytotoxicity (IC50 = 904.2 μg/mL), while C. album (CA) promoted cell proliferation (132.3% viability). In LPS-stimulated CHSE-214 cells, D. polystachya (DP) induced the highest IL-8 expression (207-fold), followed by Chenopodium album (CA) (194-fold IL-8, 49-fold TNF-α) and CTR (245-fold RIPK2), activating NF-κB, MAPK, and NOD-like receptor pathways critical for teleost immunity. Lonicera japonica (LJ) suppressed TNF-α (0.4-fold) and IRF1 (0.3-fold), indicating anti-inflammatory potential, while S. virgaurea subsp. gigantea (SV) showed biphasic TNF-α modulation (79-fold at 10 μg/mL, 5-fold at 100 μg/mL). These diverse bioactivities, particularly the robust immunomodulatory effects, highlight the promise of these extracts as natural therapeutic agents for fish health management in aquaculture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Healthy Aquaculture and Disease Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop