The use of serological techniques for virus surveillance and certification of finfish

Virus surveillance and certification procedures for finfish have traditionally relied upon isolation of replicating agents in cell culture and identification using serological procedures. However, accurate monitoring may also be achieved using techniques to detect fish antibodies against viral disease agents. The serological procedures most used for detection of fish antibodies are the serum neutralization test and immunofluorescence. Other techniques such as enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) have been less commonly used. Using infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) and viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) as examples, this paper reviews the serological test procedures used for rhabdoviral surveillance and the applications of this methodology to viral epizootiology and certification of finfish.