Moritella viscosa in lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus) and Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

• Published in: Journal of Fish Diseases
• Main Authors: Einarsdottir, Thorbjorg, Sigurðardóttir, Heiða, Björnsdóttir, Þórunn Sóley, Einarsdóttir, Elísabet
• Other Authors: Tilraunastöð í meinafræði að Keldum (HÍ), Institute for Experimental Pathology, Keldur (UI), Háskóli Íslands, University of Iceland
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2018
• Subjects: Atlantic salmon; Experimental infection; Lumpfish; Moritella viscosa; Vaccine; Atlantshafslax; Hrognkelsi; Laxeldi; Sýkingar; Bóluefni; Iceland; Salmo salar
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11815/1348; https://doi.org/10.1111/jfd.12884

Post-print (lokagerð höfundar) Winter ulcer disease, caused by Moritella viscosa, is a significant problem in cold water salmonid farming, although the bacterium can infect and cause disease in a number of other fish species, such as lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus). Lumpfish are used as cleaner fish, to eat sea lice from Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) in sea pens. It remains to be established whether M. viscosa can be transmitted between the fish species. In this study, we examined whether a salmon isolate of M. viscosa could infect and cause disease in lumpfish. We further examined whether a lumpfish isolate of M. viscosa could infect and cause disease in salmon. Finally, we examined whether vaccination of salmon with a salmon isolate of M. viscosa conferred protection against a lumpfish isolate. The data indicate that while lumpfish appeared to be resistant to a salmon isolate of M. viscosa, the salmon could be infected with a lumpfish isolate of M. viscosa. Vaccination protected the salmon against the salmon isolate of M. viscosa but did not confer sufficient protection to prevent infection with the lumpfish isolate. This work was supported by the AVS R&D Fund of Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture in Iceland [grant number S 001‐17]. Peer Reviewed