Phylogenetic analyses of Norwegian Tenacibaculum strains confirm high bacterial diversity and suggest circulation of ubiquitous virulent strains

Tenacibaculosis is a bacterial ulcerative disease affecting marine fish and represents a major threat to aquaculture worldwide. Its aetiological agents, bacteria belonging to the genus Tenacibaculum, have been present in Norway since at least the late 1980’s and lead to regular ulcerative outbreaks and high mortalities in production of farmed salmonids. Studies have shown the presence of several Tenacibaculum species in Norway and a lack of clonality in outbreak-related strains, thus preventing the development of an effective vaccine. Hence, a thorough examination of the bacterial diversity in farmed fish presenting ulcers and the geographical distribution of the pathogens should provide important insights needed to strengthen preventive actions. In this study, we investigated the diversity of Tenacibaculum strains isolated in 28 outbreaks that occurred in Norwegian fish farms in the period 2017–2020. We found that 95% of the 66 strains isolated and characterized, using an existing MultiLocus Sequence Typing system, have not previously been identified, confirming the high diversity of this genus of bacteria in Norway. Several of these Tenacibaculum species seem to be present within restricted areas (e.g., Tenacibaculum dicentrarchi in western Norway), but phylogenetic analysis reveals that several of the strains responsible of ulcerative outbreaks were isolated from different localities (e.g., ST- 172 isolated from northern to southern parts of Norway) and/or from different hosts. Understanding their reservoirs and transmission pathways could help to address major challenges in connection with prophylactic measures and development of vaccines.publishedVersio

Experimental induction of mouthrot in Atlantic salmon smolts using Tenacibaculum maritimum from Western Canada

Mouthrot, or bacterial stomatitis, is a disease which mainly affects farmed Atlantic salmon, (Salmo salar, L.), smolts recently transferred into salt water in both British Columbia (BC), Canada, and Washington State, USA. It is a significant fish welfare issue which results in economic losses due to mortality and antibiotic treatments. The associated pathogen is Tenacibaculum maritimum, a bacterium which causes significant losses in many species of farmed fish worldwide. This bacterium has not been proven to be the causative agent of mouthrot in BC despite being isolated from affected Atlantic salmon. In this study, challenge experiments were performed to determine whether mouthrot could be induced with T. maritimum isolates collected from outbreaks in Western Canada and to attempt to develop a bath challenge model. A secondary objective was to use this model to test inactivated whole‐cell vaccines for T. maritimum in Atlantic salmon smolts. This study shows that T. maritimum is the causative agent of mouthrot and that the bacteria can readily transfer horizontally within the population. Although the whole‐cell oil‐adjuvanted vaccines produced an antibody response that was partially cross‐reactive with several of the T. maritimum isolates, the vaccines did not protect the fish under the study's conditions.publishedVersio

Use of lumpfish for sea-lice control in salmon farming: challenges and opportunities

Efficient sea-lice control remains one of the most important challenges for the salmon farming industry. The use of wrasse (Labridae) as cleaner fish offers an alternative to medicines for sea-lice control, but wrasse tend to become inactive in winter. Lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus) continue to feed on sea-lice at low temperatures, and commercial production has escalated from thousands of fish in 2010 to well over 30 million juveniles deployed in 2016. However, production still relies on the capture of wild broodstock, which may not be sustainable. To meet global industry needs, lumpfish production needs to increase to reach c. 50 million fish annually and this can only come from aquaculture. We review current production methods and the use of lumpfish in sea cages and identify some of the main challenges and bottlenecks facing lumpfish intensification. Our gap analysis indicates that the areas in most need of research include better control of maturation for year-round production; formulation of appropriate diets; artificial selection of elite lines with desirable traits; and development of vaccines for certified, disease-free juvenile production. The welfare of farmed lumpfish also needs to be better quantified, and more information is needed on optimal densities and tank design. Finally, the risk of farmed lumpfish escaping from net pens needs to be critically assessed, and we argue that it might be beneficial to recover cleaner fish from salmon cages after the production cycle, perhaps using them as broodstock, for export to the Asian food markets or for the production of animal feeds

Heavy Lift Methods in Decommissioning of Installations

 In this report decommissioning of offshore petroleum platforms have been investigated. It treats decommissioning in general, the process of a typical project. A variety of suitable lifting vessels have been presented, and some concepts of removal have been evaluated. Decommissioning is important to go through with because of the environment and the use of the area after the petroleum activities ceases. Other ocean users benefit from the decommissioning because the area can be utilized when it is opened for ordinary traffic. The environment will benefit from the cessation of production because of fewer spills to sea or risk of it and being restored to a state as close to possible to original. Sometimes it is found acceptable to leave facilities behind, partially or wholly, and the marine life in the area can actually benefit from this in some cases. A decommissioning project consists of the elements planning and approval, topside and jacket preparatory work, topside removal, jacket removal, transport, and onshore dismantling and recycling. There are two main concepts of removal, reverse installation and single lift. The elements of the project are the same whichever of the concepts are used. The vessels to be used need large lifting capacities in either concept. Especially designs that lift topsides and jacket in single lifts can improve the efficiency in the projects. Several lifting vessels have been presented and a few concepts were reviewed regarding future requirements. The concepts were platform removal using only a traditional HLV, topside removal using HLV and jacket removal using buoyancy tanks, and removal using the new lifting vessel design Pieter Schelte. It is found that all the concepts can remove fixed platforms, but Pieter Schelte was especially well-suited. When Pieter Schelte is used, personnel will be exposed to less risk because more work is done onshore. Onshore work is in general more inexpensive, faster, cleaner, and safer. This gives a better HSE profile to the project as well as being more cost-efficient. On the downside, the vessel is not available before 2013. In the meantime the alternative with the HLV and buoyancy tanks can gain some more experience. This alternative scored the same as removal with reverse installation and is therefore not so successful in this comparison. There are however uncertainties involved and the solution with the buoyancy tanks are still interesting. The challenges in decommissioning are to make it less expensive, less time-consuming, and safer than today as well as keeping the environmental issues satisfactory. This can probably be reached by making the process more standardised to some extent, making use of new technologies like new vessels, doing less work at the offshore site, carrying out less lifts offshore, and do a lot of the dismantling work onshore. Pieter Schelte can to a great extent be the solution to these challenges

Skolen som hjemmested og gjemmested. En analyse av Maria Kjos Fonns samtidsrealistiske ungdomsroman Kinderwhore, med fokus på traumer og litteraturdidaktisk arbeid på ungdomstrinnet.

Master´s thesis in Primary Teacher Education (NO502

Veiledning til pedagogiske ledere : en kvalitativ undersøkelse om pedagogiske lederes opplevelse av veiledning om barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker

Formål Formålet med oppgaven er å belyse opplevelsen av veiledning som arbeidsmetode for pedagogiske ledere som arbeider med barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker i barnehagen. Videre ønsker jeg å undersøke om den pedagogiske lederen opplever at veiledningen kan bidra til å øke egen kompetanse i forhold til barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker. Problemstillingen for undersøkelsen Hvordan opplever pedagogiske ledere i barnehagen veiledning fra Pedagogisk fagsenter om barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker og opplever den pedagogiske lederen at veiledningen bidrar til å øke egen kompetanse om barnet/barn med denne type vansker? Problemstillingen for oppgaven er todelt, der den første delen fokuserer på den pedagogiske lederens opplevelse av veiledning i forhold til barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker i barnehagen. Den andre delen av problemstillingen tar for seg den om den pedagogiske lederen opplever at veiledningen bidrar til å øke egen kompetanse i forhold til barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker. Med barn/barnet menes at undersøkelsen har til hensikt å undersøke om veiledning bidrar til å øke den pedagogiske lederens kompetanse både når det gjelder opplevelsen av økning av egen kompetanse om barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker generelt, samt om veiledningen har bidratt til en opplevelse av økt kompetanse i forhold til det barnet det er søkt veiledning om. Metode Med utgangspunkt i problemstillingen er det valgt kvalitativ metode og semistrukturert intervju. Informantenes egne opplevelser og erfaringer med veiledning i forhold til barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker er det sentralt i forhold til valg av metode. I intervjuundersøkelsen deltok ni informanter, alle informantene har deltatt på veiledning over en periode over et halvt år gitt fra de Pedagogiske fagsentrene i Oslo. Informantene har førskolelærer bakgrunn og arbeider som pedagogiske ledere i barnehagen. Intervjuguiden tar utgangspunkt i et erfart veiledningssamarbeid om et barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker. Analyse av data Valg av analyse tilnærming er tematisering (Dalen 2004), med støtte i en forenkling av filleryemetoden (ref til Sætersdal:1985 og Dalen og Sætersdal 1992 i Dalen 2004). Datamaterialet blir analysert opp mot teori og empiri presentert i teorikapittelet. Til sist i drøftes implikasjoner i forhold til validitet av undersøkelsen. Hovedfunn i undersøkelsen Opplevelsen av veiledning om barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker påvirkes av mange ulike faktorer. Et av hovedfunnene viser at dersom informanten opplever at veiledningen preges god kommunikasjon og det er en gjensidig positiv relasjon mellom informanten og veilederen, opplever informantene at veiledningen fra Pedagogisk fagsenter som troverdig og forståelig. Observasjon av barnet benyttes som utgangspunkt for veiledning, noe som oppleves både positivt og negativt av informantene. Informantene opplever at muligheten til å øke egen kompetanse i stor grad henger sammen med veilederen sitt kunnskapsnivå om barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker. Undersøkelsen viser også at veiledning om barn med sosiale og emosjonelle vansker er utfordrende ut i fra at vanskeområdet er komplekst

 Heavy Lift Methods in Decommissioning of Installations

 In this report decommissioning of offshore petroleum platforms have been investigated. It treats decommissioning in general, the process of a typical project. A variety of suitable lifting vessels have been presented, and some concepts of removal have been evaluated. Decommissioning is important to go through with because of the environment and the use of the area after the petroleum activities ceases. Other ocean users benefit from the decommissioning because the area can be utilized when it is opened for ordinary traffic. The environment will benefit from the cessation of production because of fewer spills to sea or risk of it and being restored to a state as close to possible to original. Sometimes it is found acceptable to leave facilities behind, partially or wholly, and the marine life in the area can actually benefit from this in some cases. A decommissioning project consists of the elements planning and approval, topside and jacket preparatory work, topside removal, jacket removal, transport, and onshore dismantling and recycling. There are two main concepts of removal, reverse installation and single lift. The elements of the project are the same whichever of the concepts are used. The vessels to be used need large lifting capacities in either concept. Especially designs that lift topsides and jacket in single lifts can improve the efficiency in the projects. Several lifting vessels have been presented and a few concepts were reviewed regarding future requirements. The concepts were platform removal using only a traditional HLV, topside removal using HLV and jacket removal using buoyancy tanks, and removal using the new lifting vessel design Pieter Schelte. It is found that all the concepts can remove fixed platforms, but Pieter Schelte was especially well-suited. When Pieter Schelte is used, personnel will be exposed to less risk because more work is done onshore. Onshore work is in general more inexpensive, faster, cleaner, and safer. This gives a better HSE profile to the project as well as being more cost-efficient. On the downside, the vessel is not available before 2013. In the meantime the alternative with the HLV and buoyancy tanks can gain some more experience. This alternative scored the same as removal with reverse installation and is therefore not so successful in this comparison. There are however uncertainties involved and the solution with the buoyancy tanks are still interesting. The challenges in decommissioning are to make it less expensive, less time-consuming, and safer than today as well as keeping the environmental issues satisfactory. This can probably be reached by making the process more standardised to some extent, making use of new technologies like new vessels, doing less work at the offshore site, carrying out less lifts offshore, and do a lot of the dismantling work onshore. Pieter Schelte can to a great extent be the solution to these challenges

Tenacibaculosis in Norwegian farmed Atlantic salmon

Tenacibaculosis is a bacterial ulcerative skin disease of many economically important farmed fish species worldwide caused by members of genus Tenacibaculum. For the Norwegian salmon farming industry, however, tenacibaculosis was not recognized as an important disease until 2010. Since then, the increased use of media supporting Tenacibaculum growth has resulted in the identification of Tenacibaculum spp. from a large number of outbreaks of skin lesions/ulcers. Bacterial skin infections that cause skin lesions/ulcers in farmed Atlantic salmon are not only important fish health and welfare issues that needs to be solved, but also cause significant economic losses. From investigations of tenacibaculosis outbreaks in the northernmost parts of Norway, a Tenacibaculum sp. strain was repeatedly identified over several years at multiple farms. Sequence similarity analysis showed that this Tenacibaculum sp. strain was most closely related to Tenacibaculum dicentrarchi, but different enough to constitute a novel Tenacibaculum species. A polyphasic investigation showed that this was indeed a novel species in the genus Tenacibaculum, for which the name Tenacibaculum finnmarkense was proposed. The delineation of T. finnmarkense and T. dicentrarchi has since been further demonstrated by whole genome analysis. In September 2015, two separate outbreaks of tenacibaculosis occurred at two Atlantic salmon farms in Northern Norway. The events resulted in major losses of smolts newly transferred into seawater. Prior to, and during the outbreaks, large numbers of small jellyfish, identified as Dipleurosoma typicum (Boeck) were observed in the vicinity of the farms and inside the net-pens. During these outbreaks, T. finnmarkense was found to be the dominant bacteria associated with the outbreaks. Moreover it was shown that D. typicum were unlikely to be a vector for T. finnmarkense. However, it was shown that the jellyfish caused direct damage to the fish’s skin which likely exacerbated the bacterial infection by allowing an entry point for T. finnmarkense. Bath challenges conducted during this study using T. finnmarkense and Atlantic salmon smolts showed that for the first time this bacterium was able to induce tenacibaculosis as it presents in the field without pre-stressors or co-infection. The study also showed that there is pathogenic variation between T. finnmarkense strains, with T. finnmarkense strain HFJT being the most pathogenic. A cohabitation experiment showed that T. finnmarkense does not appear to spread horizontally from fish to fish and more work is therefore required to determine possible reservoirs and/or vectors for this bacterium. Due to the success of vaccines targeting other bacterial pathogens in Norwegian farmed Atlantic salmon, the efficacy of a whole cell inactivated vaccine targeting T. finnmarkense was tested. Despite the vaccines inducing an antibody response, they did not manage to give any protection against tenacibaculosis induced through a bath infection. Future research needs to focus on mitigation tools, which will need to include refining the challenge model necessary for testing such tools

 Heavy Lift Methods in Decommissioning of Installations

 In this report decommissioning of offshore petroleum platforms have been investigated. It treats decommissioning in general, the process of a typical project. A variety of suitable lifting vessels have been presented, and some concepts of removal have been evaluated. Decommissioning is important to go through with because of the environment and the use of the area after the petroleum activities ceases. Other ocean users benefit from the decommissioning because the area can be utilized when it is opened for ordinary traffic. The environment will benefit from the cessation of production because of fewer spills to sea or risk of it and being restored to a state as close to possible to original. Sometimes it is found acceptable to leave facilities behind, partially or wholly, and the marine life in the area can actually benefit from this in some cases. A decommissioning project consists of the elements planning and approval, topside and jacket preparatory work, topside removal, jacket removal, transport, and onshore dismantling and recycling. There are two main concepts of removal, reverse installation and single lift. The elements of the project are the same whichever of the concepts are used. The vessels to be used need large lifting capacities in either concept. Especially designs that lift topsides and jacket in single lifts can improve the efficiency in the projects. Several lifting vessels have been presented and a few concepts were reviewed regarding future requirements. The concepts were platform removal using only a traditional HLV, topside removal using HLV and jacket removal using buoyancy tanks, and removal using the new lifting vessel design Pieter Schelte. It is found that all the concepts can remove fixed platforms, but Pieter Schelte was especially well-suited. When Pieter Schelte is used, personnel will be exposed to less risk because more work is done onshore. Onshore work is in general more inexpensive, faster, cleaner, and safer. This gives a better HSE profile to the project as well as being more cost-efficient. On the downside, the vessel is not available before 2013. In the meantime the alternative with the HLV and buoyancy tanks can gain some more experience. This alternative scored the same as removal with reverse installation and is therefore not so successful in this comparison. There are however uncertainties involved and the solution with the buoyancy tanks are still interesting. The challenges in decommissioning are to make it less expensive, less time-consuming, and safer than today as well as keeping the environmental issues satisfactory. This can probably be reached by making the process more standardised to some extent, making use of new technologies like new vessels, doing less work at the offshore site, carrying out less lifts offshore, and do a lot of the dismantling work onshore. Pieter Schelte can to a great extent be the solution to these challenges