Comparison of susceptibility of various fish species to experimental infection with channel catfish virus

Abstract

Channel catfish virus (CCV) disease is an acute haemorrhagic disease in juvenile channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus). To date channel catfish is the only species affected by natural outbreaks of the CCV but juvenile large mouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) and silurus (Silurus meriaionalis) have suffered high mortalities in recent years in China. Histopathological phenomenon of sick fish is similar to CCV disease, and the identified virus was CCV. In this report, the pathogenicity of infectious CCV was examined by infection trials on the first known host species, the channel catfish and other teleosts. Our results indicated that there were higher detection rates of CCV from large mouth bass and silurus fish. Channel catfish virus did not induce mortality in other cypriniformes, but histopathological studies revealed that carp might be infected by both bathing and intraperitoneal infection. No deaths, clinical or histopathological signs, were found in the six other species exposed by immersion or injection. Experimental infection studies confirm that CCV infect not only channel catfish but also other species (large mouth bass, silutus and carp). The outbreaks of CCV disease only occurred when the cultured temperature was above 25 °C.