Piscirickettsia salmonis infection in cultured lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus L.)

• Published in: Journal of fish diseases Vol. 40; no. 11; pp. 1625 - 1634
• Main Authors: Marcos‐López, M, Ruane, N M, Scholz, F, Bolton‐Warberg, M, Mitchell, S O, Murphy O'Sullivan, S, Irwin Moore, A, Rodger, H D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.11.2017
• Subjects: Adipose tissue; Animals; Aquaculture; Ascites; Bacteria; Base Sequence; Biosecurity; Body organs; cleaner fish; Cyclopterus lumpus; Detection; DNA; DNA, Intergenic - genetics; Fish; Fish Diseases - microbiology; Fish Diseases - pathology; Fishes; Freshwater fishes; Gangrene; Gene sequencing; Histopathology; Infections; Ireland; Juveniles; Liver; lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus L.); Marine fishes; Marine sciences; Necrosis; Organs; Pancreas; Pathology; Phylogeny; Piscirickettsia - classification; Piscirickettsia - genetics; Piscirickettsia - isolation & purification; Piscirickettsia salmonis; Piscirickettsiaceae Infections - microbiology; Piscirickettsiaceae Infections - pathology; Piscirickettsiaceae Infections - veterinary; rRNA 16S; Salmo salar; Salmon; Sequencing; Spacer region; Tissue; Ireland; Piscirickettsia salmonis; cleaner fish; lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus L.)
• ISSN: 0140-7775; 1365-2761
• DOI: 10.1111/jfd.12630

A Piscirickettsia salmonis infection was diagnosed in lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus L.) juveniles held in a marine research facility on the west coast of Ireland. The main clinical signs and pathology included marked ascites, severe multifocal liver necrosis and severe diffuse inflammation and necrosis of the exocrine pancreas and peri‐pancreatic adipose tissue. Numerous Piscirickettsia‐like organisms were observed by histopathology in the affected organs, and the bacterial species was characterized by molecular analysis. Sequencing of the partial 16S rDNA gene and internal transcribed spacer region showed the lumpfish sequences to be closely related to previously identified Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) sequences from Ireland. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first detection of P. salmonis in lumpfish worldwide. The infection is considered potentially significant in terms of lumpfish health and biosecurity.