An interactive training program is currently being developed to provide a computer simulation of fish necropsy and histopathology techniques. This user friendly program, "Fish guts," is authored in Macro mind Director for the Macintosh, and is intended for students and professionals who wish to review a standard fish necropsy protocol. Rainbow trout and channel catfish are used as necropsy models to illustrate basic internal and external anatomy. Additional species are included to show interspecies variation. The program is interactive and contains digitized sound, color photographs, micrographs and movies. Users can observe all aspects of a diagnostic examination, including case history, gross necropsy, examination of digitized glass slides and preparation of final reports. Aspects of software production will be discussed, and a prototype version of Fish guts will be available for demonstration.

This project was supported by an award from the Designated Research Initiative Fund (DRIF), Office of the President; and the Office of Program Development, Department of Pathology, University of Maryland at Baltimore.