An urgent need exists to modernize and bolster capacity in freshwater disease diagnostics in the united states

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Region 4, awarded Auburn University a $1.0M project grant under the Fish and Aquatic Conservation - Aquatic Invasive Species program (CFDA 15.608), effective September 1, 2025, through May 19, 2030. The award supports the Southeastern Cooperative Fish Parasite and Disease Project, a cooperative initiative between Auburn University's Southeastern Cooperative Fish Parasite and Disease Lab (AU-SCFPDL) in Auburn, Alabama, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Fish Health Center (USFWS-FHC) in Warm Springs, Georgia. The project delivers enhanced capacity for fish disease diagnostics and research, addressing a critical gap in freshwater disease diagnostic infrastructure across the southeastern United States where demand substantially exceeds existing capabilities.

The funding directly supports on-the-ground fish disease research, diagnostic tool innovation, and the implementation of advanced detection methodologies including environmental DNA (eDNA) for early pathogen detection. Services and products provided benefit seven state fisheries agencies currently cooperating with AU-SCFPDL (Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Missouri) by enabling enhanced disease inspection capabilities required for the interstate sale and movement of fish. The project strengthens university-federal partnerships in fish health management and supports the critical mission of protecting the nation's inland aquatic natural resources and sport fisheries through improved diagnostic and research capabilities.

This capacity is essential for protecting our nations inland aquatic natural resources and for meeting the increasingly stringent requirements for disease inspections related to the sale and movement of fish across state lines. These needs are particularly acute in the southeastern united states, a region where the magnitude of aquatic natural resources and sport fisheries vastly exceed the level of infrastructure dedicated to freshwater disease diagnostics. This project supports the southeastern cooperative fish parasite and disease project at auburn university by enhancing its capacity for implementing on-the-ground fish disease research and diagnostic tool innovation. These activities directly support the mission of auburn university and address the needs of natural resource agencies in the united states. The intention of this project also leverages other AU-USFWS collaboration regarding fish health, fish genetics, and the use of edna for early detection of pathogens. All of these are useful, impactful tools that fisheries agencies, sportfish anglers, and fish farmers can use to better understand and manage the resource. The aim of this cooperative project between auburn universitys southeastern cooperative fish parasite and disease lab (AKA AU fish disease lab, AU-scfpdl, auburn, AL) and the US fish and wildlife services fish health center (USFWS-FHC, warm springs, GA) is to increase capacity for fish disease diagnostics. Demand for fish disease diagnostics clearly exceeds existing infrastructure at AU-scfpdl and usfwsfhc. These funds will directly benefit the state fisheries agencies already in cooperation with AU-scfpdl (i.e., AL, GA, SC, NC, TN, WV, MO) while also providing a supporting role to the USFWS-FHC. These funds will hasten further university-federal entity partnerships in fish health, including the mission critical focus areas of state and federal hatchery system biosecurity, surveillance of wild fish populations for new and emerging pathogens (including exotic invasive species and aquatic nuisance species), and in-service training and cross fertilization of methodologies and approaches between the AU-scfpdl and USFWS-FHC. Personnel from both labs will routinely interact and cooperate on disease diagnostics to assist state and federal partners.