1. Massive infection of Cystidicoloides ephemeridarum in brown trout Salmo trutta with skeletal deformities
- Author
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Fabiano Capparucci, Fabio Marino, Nunziacarla Spanò, Maria Violetta Brundo, Andrea Salvo, Giuseppe Acri, M. D’Agostino, Carmelo Iaria, S Macheda, S. Marguccio, Francesco Caridi, A Siclari, Giovanni Lanteri, A. Belvedere, G De Benedetto, Antonella Smeriglio, Domenico Trombetta, and Francesco Macrì
- Subjects
Malabsorption ,Trout ,040301 veterinary sciences ,Sterliadochona ,Mineral deficiency ,Zoology ,010501 environmental sciences ,Aquatic Science ,medicine.disease_cause ,01 natural sciences ,0403 veterinary science ,Fish Diseases ,Brown trout ,Salmonidae ,Scoliosis ,Infestation ,medicine ,Animals ,Italy ,Parasite hosting ,Salmo ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences ,biology ,04 agricultural and veterinary sciences ,medicine.disease ,biology.organism_classification ,Nematode - Abstract
We investigated the cause of skeletal deformities found in brown trout from the Aspromonte mountain area in Reggio Calabria, Italy. Toxicological, histopathological and parasitological analyses were carried out on 14 fish with evident macro-morphological alterations from 2 different locations in the same river, and 4 control fish without morphological alterations from a different river (far from the first river but still within the area under study). Histopathological and radiological observations confirmed severe skeletal deformities in the specimens investigated. Parasitological examinations highlighted the presence of the nematodeCystidicoloides ephemeridarum, found only within the gastrointestinal tract of specimens showing deformities. Moreover, a direct correlation between parasite number and fish size was found. Given the low heavy metal levels and the presence of a massive parasitosis in teleosts showing deformities, we postulate a correlation between skeletal deformities and nematode infestation: the parasites caused a serious vitamin and mineral deficiency in the fish, which led to a dysplastic vertebral column. The low calcium levels found in malformed specimens compared with negative controls effectively confirm this hypothesis.
- Published
- 2021