Shrimp, EMS expert to retire

Donald Lightner, the shrimp pathologist credited with cracking the mystery of early mortality syndrome (EMS) plaguing shrimp farms in Southeast Asia, has announced he is retiring.

Lightner made the announcement in a letter which was posted by Shrimp News International. In it, he cited his 44-year career in teaching and running the aquaculture pathology laboratory at the University of Arizona.

“The time has come for me to step back and be proud of all these accomplishments and to begin another chapter in my life, enjoying my family and grandchildren,” Lightner wrote.

Lightner’s career may perhaps be most remembered for his work diagnosing EMS, more properly known as acute hepatopancreatic necrotic syndrome. The disease had been ravaging shrimp farms in Asia, with no sign as to what was causing it until Lightner discovered in the summer of 2013 that the disease was being transmitted by vibrio parahaemolyticus bacteria infected with a virus.

The discovery did not lead to an overnight cure for the disease – EMS still remains a costly problem in Asian shrimp farms – but industry leaders hailed Lightner’s work as a critical step that has given rise to a number of treatment and preventive plans that have helped farmers deal with EMS.

Lightner said he will retire effective 9 October. The university, he said, is seeking a successor.

“The shrimp farming industry has always been a puzzle in which we all have had a piece to work on,” Lightner wrote. “I am confident that my replacement will bring new experiences and added value to the department, allowing the work on my piece of the puzzle to resume shortly.”

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