White Spot Syndrome Virus In Decapods From Mississippi Sound, USA, and Susceptibility of Palaemonetes pugio and Uca panacea to a Chinese Isolate

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

3-12-2020

Department

Coastal Sciences, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory

School

Ocean Science and Engineering

Abstract

The presence and quantity of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) was surveyed using TaqMan real-time PCR to assess the extent of the virus in Mississippi Sound, USA. A total of 3577 wild decapods comprising 11 species was collected between November 2012 and August 2015. WSSV was present in 10 of the 11 species. Prevalence ranged from 5.1% in Uca rapax to 38.8% in U. spinicarpa. Viral load ranged from 1.8 to 7.3 log10 copies of WSSV µg-1 total DNA. Two Gulf species, Palaemonetes pugio and U. panacea, were injected with a series of doses of a virulent WSSV isolate from China to determine relative susceptibility and virulence because continuing translocation of highly pathogenic isolates of WSSV poses risk to native species. Survival was 0-65% for P. pugio and 5-60% for U. panacea. Median survival time was lower for P. pugio than U. panacea at all doses. Mean (±SD) lethal load was 9.0 ± 8.9 log copies of WSSV µg-1 total DNA in P. pugio and 8.2 ± 8.3 in U. panacea. Mean viral load in survivors was higher in U. panacea than in P. pugio (5.8 ± 6.1 vs. 3.2 ± 3.0 log copies of WSSV µg-1 total DNA); mean viral load was lower in wild individuals of those species (2.9 ± 3.2 for P. pugio and 4.9 ± 5.0 for U. panacea). U. panacea is potentially more tolerant of WSSV than P. pugio and may serve as an important reservoir host in the community.

Publication Title

Diseases of Aquatic Organisms

Volume

138

First Page

121

Last Page

131

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