Volumen 44 - Número 3: 561-569 | 2009
Article

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Histological survey of four species of cultivated molluscs in Chile susceptible to OIE notifiable diseases

Mariel Campalans^1,2 and Karin B. Lohrmann^2*

¹Escuela de Ciencias del Mar, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Av. Altamirano 1480, Valparaíso, Chile
²Facultad de Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Católica del Norte, Larrondo 1281, Coquimbo, Chile

*This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Shellfish cultured in Chile were analyzed to detect the presence of diseases notifiable to OIE (Office International des Epizooties: the World Organization for Animal Health). Tissue samples of the susceptible species, the abalones Haliotis discus hannai, H. rufescens, and oysters Crassostrea gigas, and Ostrea chilensis cultured in Chile were collected in winter and summer. Histological sections were performed of all species; furthermore, tissue from the Chilean oyster (O. chilensis) was processed for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to describe the Bonamia-like protozoan detected in the haemocytes of some oysters. The only pathogen from the list of notifiable diseases of the OIE was Xenohaliotis californiensis in H. rufescens. This bacterium formed intracellular inclusions in digestive epithelia, mainly in the post-esophagus and digestive gland. The ultrastructural description of the Bonamia -like protozoan shows it is similar in some features and different in others from the species B. ostreae and B. exitiosa included in the list of notifiable diseases of the OIE.

Key words: Mollusc diseases, Bonamia sp., RLOs in abalones, Xenohaliotis californiensis

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