Associate Head / Professor of Aquatic Animal Health


DVM, MSc, PhD, MBA

Office Address
Room 1A-510, 5/F, Block 1, To Yuen Building, 31 To Yuen Street, City University of Hong Kong

Office Tel
+852 3442-5398

Office Fax
+852 3442-0589

Email
ssthilai@cityu.edu.hk

Biography URL
CityU Scholars


Biography
Teaching
Research
Selected Publications (** indicates student co-authors)
Prof. St-Hilaire received her veterinary degree from the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), Canada, in 1994. She then completed her MSc and PhD in veterinary epidemiology at the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Guelph, respectively. She also holds an MBA from UPEI.
Before joining City University of Hong Kong, she was a Canada Research Chair at the Atlantic Veterinary College, Prince Edward Island, Canada. Prior to that appointment, she was an associate professor at Idaho State University in the U.S. She has also worked for a number of government agencies including the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in Canada, the Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science in the UK, and the Chilean Government.


Most of her classroom teaching has been on aquatic animal health and epidemiology. She has mentored 24 undergraduates and 18 graduate students, as well as 4 post-doctoral researchers.


Prof. St-Hilaire’s research over the last 20 years has covered topics ranging from fish nutrition to infectious disease control and surveillance. She has been involved in a number of fish disease outbreak investigations ranging from viral to parasitic in origin in both wild and farmed animal populations. Most recently, she has been evaluating area level management strategies in aquaculture industries and treatment efficacy of different pharmaceutical products against parasitic and bacterial diseases of fish. She has over 70 peer-reviewed publications.


Poirier, LA**, Symington, LA, Davidson, J, St?Hilaire, S, Quijón, PA. 2017. Exploring the decline of oyster beds in Atlantic Canada shorelines: potential effects of crab predation on American oysters (Crassostrea virginica). Helgol Mar Res; 71:13, https://doi.org/10.1186/s10152-017-0493-z
Price, D**, Ibarra, R.,Sánchez, J., St-Hilaire, S. 2017. A retrospective assessment of the effect of fallowing on piscirickettsiosis in Chile. Aquaculture 473, 400-406, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2017.02.034.
Arriagada GA**, Stryhn H, Vanderstichel R., Campistó J.L., Rees E.E., Sanchez J., Ibarra R, St-Hilaire S. 2017. Evaluating the effect of synchronized sea lice treatments in Chile. Preventative Veterinary Medicine 136 (1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2016.11.011
Jia, B**., St-Hilaire, S., Singh, K., Gardner, I.A., 2017. Biosecurity knowledge, attitudes and practices of farmers culturing yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco) in Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces, China. Aquaculture 471 (1), 48–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2017.01.016
Poirier LA.**, Mohan, J, Speare, R, Davidson,J, Pedro A. Quijon, St-Hilaire, S. 2016. Moulting synchrony in green crabs (Carcinus maenas) from Prince Edward Island, Canada. Marine Biology Research, 969-977. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17451000.2016.1210810
Jia, B.**, St-Hilaire, S., Stryhn,H. Yu,J., Groman, DB, Gardner, I. 2016. Analysis of transaction records of live freshwater finfish in China: A case study of customers’ claims of fish mortality using cross-classified modeling. Aquaculture Reports 4:150–155. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aqrep.2016.10.003
St-Hilaire S., Krause J., White K., Singh K. 2016. Break-even analysis for a green crab fishery in PEI Canada. Management of Biological Invasions 7:297-30. http://www.reabic.net/journals/mbi/2016/3/MBI_2016_StHilaire_etal.pdf
Jia, B.**, St-Hilaire, S., Singh, K., Gardner, I. 2016. Farm-level returns and costs of yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco) aquaculture in Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces, China. Aquaculture Reports 4:48-56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aqrep.2016.06.001
Price D**, Stryhn H, Sánchez J, Ibarra R, Tello A, St-Hilaire S. 2016. Effectiveness of antibiotic treatments against Piscirickettsiosis in farmed Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar L.) in Chile. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms, 118:227-235. https://doi.org/10.3354/dao02978
Patla,D., St-Hilaire, S., Ray A., Hossack B.R., Peterson C.R. 2016. Amphibian Mortality Events and Ranavirus Outbreaks in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Herpetological Review 47(1) 50-54.
Sanchez, J., Carnegie, R., Warris, P., Hill, J., St-Hilaire, S. 2016. Risk characterization for introduction and spread of Multinucleate Sphere X 1 (MSX) in Prince Edward Island, Canada. Journal of Shellfish Research 34(3):995-1005. https://doi.org/10.2983/035.034.0326
Hillis, A.M**., Prange, S.T**., Adomako, M.**, Christensen, L.M., St-Hilaire, S., Sheridan, P.P. 2016. Characterization of the bacterial microflora on the skin of boreal toads, Anaxyrus (Bufo) boreas boreas, and Columbia spotted frogs, Rana luteiventris, in the Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming USA. International Journal of Microbiology Research, 7(1), 588-597. https://bioinfopublication.org/files/articles/7_1_2_IJMR.pdf
Rees EE, St-Hilaire S, Jones SRM, Krko?ek M, DeDominicis S, Foreman MGG, Patanasatienkul ,T and Revie CW. 2015. Spatial patterns of sea lice infection among wild and captive salmon in western Canada. Landscape Ecology. DOI 10.1007/s10980-015-0188-2.
St-Hilaire, S , Price, D, Taylor, S, and roman, D.. 2015. Epsom salt treatment of diplomonad intestinal parasites at a commercial rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) facility. Canadian Veterinary Journal 56:876-878. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4502860
Vanderstichel R, St-Hilaire S, Ibarra R., Lyngstad TM, Rees E, Medina MH.2015. Space-time cluster analysis of the non-pathogenic infectious salmon anemia virus (HPR0 ISAV) in Chile, 2011-2012. Aquaculture. 437, 120-126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2014.11.027
Rees, EE, Davidson, J., Fairbrother, JM., St-Hilaire,S., Saab, M., McClure, J.. 2015. Occurrence and antimicrobial resistance of Escherichia coli in oysters and mussels from Atlantic Canada. Foodborne Pathogens and Disease. 12, 1-6. DOI: 10.1089/fpd.2014.1840
Jakob E., Stryhn H., Yu J., Medina H.M., Rees E.E., Sanchez J., St-Hilaire S. 2014. Epidemiology of piscirickettsiosis on selected Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) salt water aquaculture farms in Chile. Aquaculture.433, 288-294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2014.06.018
Rees E.E., Rolando Ibarra, R., Sanchez, J., Jakob, E., St-Hilaire, S. 2014. Transmission of Piscirickettsia salmonis among salt water salmonid farms in Chile. Aquaculture.428, 189-194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2014.03.031
Arriagada GA.**, Stryhn H., Campisto JL., Rees EE., Sanchez J., Ibarra R., Medina M., St-Hilaire S. 2014. Evaluation of the performance of pyrethroids over different life stages of C. rogercresseyi in southern Chile. Aquaculture. 426, 213-237. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2014.02.007
Park ST**, Collingwood, AM**, St-Hilaire S., Sheridan, P. 2014. Inhibition of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis caused bybacteria isolated from the skin of boreal toads, Anaxyrus(Bufo) boreas boreas, from Grand Teton National Park,Wyoming, USA. Microbiology Insights 7, 1-9. DOI: 10.4137/MBI.S13639