HUSBANDRY · CONTROLLED DOCUMENT
AE-SOP-0250 — Necropsy & Disease Diagnostics
To investigate every mortality and disease event with a standardised necropsy and diagnostic pathway, so that a cause is found before a single loss becomes an outbreak. The procedure guarantees that fresh mortalities are necropsied within the viability window, that samples route to the correct diagnostic track, and that any reportable or transmissible finding triggers immediate quarantine action — because the fastest way to lose a system is to miss the first sign of disease in it.
ActiveHusbandryRev C
Doc Control AE-SOP-0250Revision CEffective 2090-05-10Next Review 2091-05-10Owner Veterinary LeadApprover Marine ScienceStatus ActiveClass RESTRICTED // TIDEWATER-EYES-ONLY
1. Purpose
To investigate every mortality and disease event with a standardised necropsy and diagnostic pathway, so that a cause is found before a single loss becomes an outbreak. The procedure guarantees that fresh mortalities are necropsied within the viability window, that samples route to the correct diagnostic track, and that any reportable or transmissible finding triggers immediate quarantine action — because the fastest way to lose a system is to miss the first sign of disease in it.
2. Scope
All mortality and clinical disease investigation across station stock.
- In scope: Mortality triage, necropsy, histology and microbiology sampling, diagnosis, and outbreak escalation.
- Out of scope: Quarantine of new accessions before any disease event, which follows AE-SOP-0101; forensic tissue sampling for prosecution, which follows AE-SOP-0312.
3. Definitions
| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Necropsy | The standardised post-mortem examination performed to determine cause of death. |
| Viability Window | The interval after death within which tissues remain fresh enough for reliable diagnostics. |
| Diagnostic Track | The assigned pathway — histology, microbiology, parasitology, or toxicology — for a given sample. |
| Reportable Finding | A transmissible or notifiable pathogen that triggers immediate quarantine and escalation. |
| Index Case | The first confirmed case in a system, anchoring the outbreak investigation. |
4. Responsibilities
| Role | Responsibility |
|---|
| Veterinary Lead (Owner) | Owns the procedure; performs or supervises necropsy and signs each diagnosis. |
| Diagnostic Technician | Prepares and routes samples to the correct diagnostic track and logs turnaround. |
| Husbandry Lead | Executes quarantine and system isolation on any reportable finding. |
| NEREID | Correlates mortality timing with system telemetry and flags any cluster suggesting an emerging outbreak. |
5. Necropsy & Diagnostic Routing
| Finding | Viability Window | Diagnostic Track | Escalation |
|---|
| Fresh mortality | Necropsy ≤ 6 h chilled | Gross + histology | Log to cohort record |
| Suspected bacterial / fungal | Sample ≤ 6 h | Microbiology + sensitivity | Isolate system |
| Suspected parasite | Fresh wet-mount ≤ 2 h | Parasitology | Screen co-housed stock |
| Reportable / transmissible | Immediate | Confirm + notify | Full quarantine, dossier note |
Note. A mortality past its viability window is recorded but not relied upon for diagnosis; any reportable finding triggers quarantine before confirmation completes — containment never waits on the final result.
6. Materials & Equipment
- Necropsy station with chilled holding and instruments
- Histology fixation and processing supplies
- Microbiology culture and sensitivity kit
- Parasitology wet-mount and microscopy station
- Sample-routing labels and diagnostic request forms
- Quarantine isolation capacity on standby
7. Procedure
7.1 Triage
- Chill fresh mortalities and necropsy within the viability window.
- Record gross findings against the cohort and system record.
- Past the window, record but do not rely on the carcass for diagnosis.
7.2 Diagnose
- Route samples to histology, microbiology, parasitology, or toxicology by finding.
- Anchor the index case and log diagnostic turnaround.
- Sign each diagnosis under the Veterinary Lead.
7.3 Contain
- Isolate the system on any suspected transmissible finding.
- Trigger full quarantine on a reportable finding before confirmation completes.
- Screen co-housed stock and note the event to the relevant dossier.
8. Records
- Necropsy report with gross and histology findings (retained 5 years)
- Diagnostic-track request and result log
- Turnaround-time record per case
- Reportable-finding escalation log
- Quarantine and co-housed-screen record
9. References
10. Revision History
| Rev | Date | Author | Summary |
|---|
| A | 2088-08-03 | Veterinary Lead | Initial issue; necropsy pathway and diagnostic tracks established. |
| B | 2089-09-15 | Veterinary Lead | Added viability windows and reportable-finding quarantine trigger. |
| C | 2090-05-10 | Veterinary Lead | NEREID mortality-cluster correlation and turnaround tracking added. |