James Cook University (JCU) in Singapore’s key emphasis to support the local agri-food sector to produce 30 per cent of its nutritional needs by 2030 (or Singapore's "30 by 30" goal), will be further enhanced with a recent new subject offering for students majoring in aquaculture.

The subject “Diagnosis of Bacterial Diseases in Aquaculture”, is offered to both the Bachelor of Science (Majoring in Aquaculture Science and Technology) and the Bachelor of Business and Environmental Science (Majoring in Aquaculture).

JCU, Singapore values hands-on learning, and offers students many opportunities to gain knowledge and practical skills through lectures, tutorials and practical sessions. The practical sessions in this subject underscore the importance of building hands-on, practical skills by taking the students through field sampling and laboratory diagnosis of bacterial disease.

Diagnosis of Bacterial Diseases in Aquaculture aims to equip students with the ability to:

• Critically analyse and evaluate the role of disease in aquatic populations
• Develop advanced knowledge of the main tropical aquatic animal bacteria
• Integrate knowledge of specific disease characteristics and clinical signs into a plan for sample collection in the field
• Apply diagnostic reasoning to identify and manage bacteria in aquatic systems

“Bacterial infection in intensive fish farming can cause mortalities of up to 80-100% very quickly. Accurate and prompt diagnosis plays a huge part in managing and preventing these large production losses,” says Dr Susan Gibson-Kueh, an Aquatic Animal Health Veterinarian and Fish Pathologist who lectures at JCU in Singapore. “Training students who will go on to work in the aquaculture industry, in a discipline that can help farms better recognise and manage losses due to infectious disease, will be a boost to successful production.”

Find out more about our Bachelor of Science (Majoring in Aquaculture Science and Technology) and Bachelor of Business and Environmental Science (Majoring in Aquaculture).

Contacts

Media: Ms Pinky Sibal [email protected]