Dawson, V. K., Rach, J. J., and Schreier, T. M., 1994, Hydrogen peroxide as a
fungicide for fish culture: Bulletin of the Aquaculture Association of Canada, v.
94, no. 2, p. 54-56.

Abstract

Antifungal agents are needed to maintain healthy stocks of fish in the intensive
culture systems currently employed in fish hatcheries. Malachite green has been the
most widely used antifungal agent; however, its potential for producing teratology
in animals and fish precludes further use in fish culture. Preliminary studies at the
National Fisheries Research Center, La Crosse, WI, USA (La Crosse Center)
indicate that hydrogen peroxide is effective for control of Saprolegnia sp. fungus
on incubating eggs of rainbow trout. It is also effective against a wide variety of
other organisms such as bacteria, yeasts, viruses, and spores, and has been
proposed as a treatment for sea lice on salmon. Hydrogen peroxide and its primary
decomposition products, oxygen and water, are not systemic poisons and are
considered environmentally compatible. In response to a petition from the La
Crosse Center, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently classified
hydrogen peroxide as a "low regulatory priority" when used for control of fungus
on fish and fish eggs. Preliminary tests conducted at the La Crosse Center suggest
that prophylactic treatments of 250 to 500 ppm (based on 100% active ingredient)
for 15 minutes every other day will inhibit fungal infections on healthy rainbow
trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) eggs. This treatment regime also seems to inhibit
fungal development and increase hatching success among infected eggs. Efficacy
and safety of hydrogen peroxide as a fungicide for fish are currently being
evaluated.

Keywords

fish-culture, disease-control, fungicides-, hydrogen-compounds,
performance-assessment, fish-diseases, Oncorhynchus-mykiss, hydrogen-peroxide