Ichthyophonus-like infection in wild amphibians from Québec, Canada

Diseases of Aquatic Organisms

John C. Harshbarger¹  Martin Ouellet¹  Bruce Pauli¹  Igor Mikaelian¹  Jean Rodrigue¹  David M. Green¹ 

关键词: Amphibian;    Anuran;    Eukaryotic protist;    Ichthyophonosis;    Pathology;   

DOI  :  10.3354/dao040195

学科分类：生物科学（综合）

来源: Inter-Research

【 摘 要 】

ABSTRACT: Myositis associated with infection by Ichthyophonus-like organisms was diagnosed in 35 of 260 (13%) wild amphibians collected in Québec, Canada, from 1959 to 1964 (n = 30), and 1992 to 1999 (n = 230). Infection was diagnosed in 17 greenfrogs Rana clamitans, 9 wood frogs R. sylvatica, 4 red-spotted newts Notophthalmus viridescens, 3 bullfrogs R. catesbeiana, 1 spring peeper Pseudacris crucifer, and 1 pickerel frogR. palustris. The spring peeper and one of the bullfrogs were collected in 1964 from the Mont Saint-Hilaire Biosphere Reserve, indicating long-term presence of the organism. Spores of the organisms invaded striated muscle fibers and wereassociated with variable degrees of granulomatous and eosinophilic inflammation. Infection was considered fatal in 2 green frogs, 1 wood frog, and 1 red-spotted newt. It was considered potentially significant in 3 additional green frogs in which up to100% of the fibers of some muscles were replaced by spores associated with a severe granulomatous reaction. Ultrastructural features of Ichthyophonus-like spores included a thick trilaminated wall, a paramural cytoplasm, multiple nuclei, ovalmitochondria with short tubulo-vesicular cristae and numerous ribosomes. This report represents 4 new host records and shows that ichthyophonosis is enzootic in amphibians from Québec.

【 授权许可】

Unknown