Abstract
Amphibian chytridiomycosis is an emerging infectious disease of amphibians thought to be moved between countries by trade in infected amphibians. The causative fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, produces aquatic, motile zoospores; infections have been achieved in experiments by exposing amphibians to water containing zoospores. However, the ability of this fungus to survive in the environment in the absence of an amphibian host is unknown. We show that B. dendrobatidis will survive in tap water and in deionized water for 3 and 4 weeks, respectively. In lake water, infectivity was observed for 7 weeks after introduction. The knowledge that water can remain infective for up to 7 weeks is important for the formulation of disease control and quarantine strategies for the management of water that has been in contact with amphibians.
Highlights
Amphibian chytridiomycosis is an emerging infectious disease of amphibians thought to be moved between countries by trade in infected amphibians
B. dendrobatidis has been hypothesized to have been introduced into new areas by movement of infected amphibians or in contaminated water or soil containing zoospores, but little is known about the epidemiology of amphibian chytridiomycosis [15,20,21]
Growth of zoosporangia was apparent at week 1, and motile zoospores of both strains were present in lake water cultures for 1 to 7 weeks
Summary
Amphibian chytridiomycosis is an emerging infectious disease of amphibians thought to be moved between countries by trade in infected amphibians. The causative fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, produces aquatic, motile zoospores; infections have been achieved in experiments by exposing amphibians to water containing zoospores. Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, a member of the fungal order Chytridiales, causes amphibian chytridiomycosis, an emerging infectious disease [1]. The organism does not survive desiccation [11], so infected amphibians have been identified as the major means in which B. dendrobatidis could be moved within and between countries. B. dendrobatidis has been hypothesized to have been introduced into new areas by movement of infected amphibians or in contaminated water or soil containing zoospores, but little is known about the epidemiology of amphibian chytridiomycosis [15,20,21]. No data exist on the survival of B. dendrobatidis in water after an infected frog has been removed. We hypothesized that sterile water would represent the best possible opportunity for survival of B. dendrobatidis owing to the absence of competitor microorganisms
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