Systemic infection with Uronema‐like ciliates in farmed turbot, Scophthalmus maximus (L.)

• Published in: Journal of Fish Diseases
• Main Authors: Sterud, E., Hansen, M K., Mo, T A.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2000
• Subjects: Norway; Scophthalmus maximus; Turbot
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2761.2000.00204.x; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1046%2Fj.1365-2761.2000.00204.x; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1046/j.1365-2761.2000.00204.x; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1046/j.1365-2761.2000.00204.x

Histophagous ciliates caused high mortality among turbot in a commercial fish farm in southern Norway. The ciliates spread systemically in fry (< 0.3 g). In the early stages of infection the ciliates were found in connective tissue in skin and fins, as well as in nervous tissue. In terminal stages the whole organism was infected. In large turbot (500–1000 g), the ciliates were predominantly found in the central nervous system, causing liquefaction of the nervous tissue. The ciliates were not identified to species but resembled species in the genus Uronema (Scuticociliatida).