Genetic Information Helps Keep Great Lakes Fishes Healthy

It’s been almost a decade since the first outbreak of viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSv) was seen at the University of Toledo’s Lake Erie Center in the summer of 2006. Dead fish washed up on shore, while others struggled in the shallow water, all showing bright red lesions on their bodies. VHSv is essentially the Ebola of the fish world: a highly contagious virus that causes erratic behavior, internal bleeding and death.

Dr. Carol Stepien, Director of the Lake Erie Center and Professor of Ecology at the University of Toledo (UT), has worked on VHSv in Great Lakes fishes ever since that first outbreak at the beach across the road.