Pathogens in Aquaculture Environments

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2025) | Viewed by 3110

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Centro de Investigaciones Biologicas Del Noroeste, La Paz, Mexico
Interests: bacterial shrimp pathogens; aquaculture; pathogen–host interaction

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aquaculture has experienced accelerated growth in recent years. Still, large-scale production has been linked to environmental issues and diseases, particularly in intensive farming systems, which have significantly contributed to a higher number of disease cases. Many infectious agents, such as opportunistic bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites, are the causative agents of infections in all aquaculture production systems. Various studies have shown that most infectious diseases found in farmed organisms, whether in marine or freshwater environments, are caused by bacteria, many of which act as secondary opportunistic pathogens that attack sick organisms by affecting their natural immunity as hosts. Consequently, to find effective solutions for the timely detection of the major diseases limiting aquaculture system production, research should focus on the characteristics of potential pathogens, the biology of the hosts, and a proper understanding of global environmental factors. Therefore, the main objective of this Special Issue is to address health problems based on scientifically verified and recommended methods that help identify microbial agents infecting aquaculture organisms and systems.

Dr. Eduardo Quiroz-Gúzman
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • bacterial pathogens
  • bacterial pathogen database
  • aquaculture
  • disease
  • bacterial fish pathogens
  • bacterial shrimp pathogens
  • bacterial adhesion
  • bacterial colonization
  • virulence factor
  • pathogen–host interaction

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 1856 KiB  
Article
Antibiotic Resistance in Vibrio Bacteria Associated with Red Spotting Disease in Sea Urchin Tripneustes gratilla (Echinodermata)
by Mayan Ben Natan, Matan Masasa, Nadav Shashar and Lior Guttman
Microorganisms 2024, 12(12), 2460; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12122460 - 29 Nov 2024
Viewed by 914
Abstract
The red spotting disease harms sea urchins to the extent of mass mortality in the ocean and echinocultures, accompanied by environmental damage and economic losses. The current study emphasizes the antimicrobial resistance of three isolated bacteria, closely related to Vibrio harveyi, Vibrio [...] Read more.
The red spotting disease harms sea urchins to the extent of mass mortality in the ocean and echinocultures, accompanied by environmental damage and economic losses. The current study emphasizes the antimicrobial resistance of three isolated bacteria, closely related to Vibrio harveyi, Vibrio owensii, and Vibrio fortis, associated with red spotting in the cultured sea urchin Tripneustes gratilla. In vitro trials examined the susceptibility of these bacterial isolates to various antibiotics. In addition, using an in silico examination, we revealed the arsenal of antimicrobial resistance genes in available genomes of various pathogenic Vibrio associated with diseases in sea urchins, fish, shellfish, and corals. These two approaches enabled the discussion of the similarities and differences between aquatic pathogenic Vibrio and their antibiotic resistance. Among them, we revealed a core resistance to tetracyclines and penams by the in vitro examined strains. At the same time, the in silico study also supported this core resistance by the presence of the adeF and CRP genes in the bacterial genomes. Nevertheless, variability and specific resistance were evident at the species and strain levels in the Vibrio bacteria and genomes. The in vitro trials highlighted the diverse resistance of the Vibrio harveyi-like isolate to all examined antibiotics, while the other two isolates were found susceptible to nitrofurantoin and sulfamethoxazole. The resistance of the Vibrio harveyi-like isolate could not have been obtained in the genome of the proposed relative of Vibrio harveyi VHJR7 that lacks the oqxA and oqxB genes, which enables such a resistance. A unique sensitivity of the Vibrio fortis-like isolate to erythromycin is proposed when compared to other isolated Vibrio and Vibrio genomes that seem capable of resisting this drug. According to the results, we propose nitrofurantoin or sulfamethoxazole for treating two of the red-spotting-associated isolates (Vibrio fortis and Vibrio owensii-like), but not Vibrio harveyi-like. We assume that a shared resistance to some antibiotics by Vibrios is gained by a horizontal gene transfer while previous exposures of a bacterial strain to a specific drug may induce the development of a unique resistance. Finally, we discuss the novel knowledge on antibiotic resistance in Vibrio from the current research in light of the potential risks when using drugs for disease control in aquaculture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pathogens in Aquaculture Environments)
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Review

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69 pages, 6755 KiB  
Review
Coccidia (Apicomplexa: Eucoccidiorida) of Freshwater Fish
by Simuzar Mamedova and Panagiotis Karanis
Microorganisms 2025, 13(2), 347; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13020347 - 5 Feb 2025
Viewed by 1121
Abstract
The phylum Apicomplexa includes endoparasites of fish worldwide, which cause parasitic infections that can adversely affect productivity in aquaculture. They are considered bioindicators of water pollution. Piscine apicomplexan parasites can be divided into two major groups: the intracellular blood parasites (Adeleorina) and the [...] Read more.
The phylum Apicomplexa includes endoparasites of fish worldwide, which cause parasitic infections that can adversely affect productivity in aquaculture. They are considered bioindicators of water pollution. Piscine apicomplexan parasites can be divided into two major groups: the intracellular blood parasites (Adeleorina) and the coccidians (Eimeriorina), which can infect the gastrointestinal tract and several organs. This work aims to compile, as completely as possible and for the first time, the available information concerning the species of coccidia (Apicomplexa: Conoidasida), which has been reported from freshwater fish. A comprehensive bibliographic search was performed using all available databases and fields, including Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar. In the freshwater fish found, there were 173 described species. This review demonstrates that freshwater fish’s eimeriid coccidia are better studied than adeleid coccidia. Studies of coccidian freshwater fish fauna indicate a high infection with Eimeria and Goussia species. The wealthiest coccidia fauna were found in the Cypriniformes, Perciformes, Siluriformes and Cichliformes fishes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pathogens in Aquaculture Environments)
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