Project Number: 6420-32000-024-15
Project Type: Nonfunded Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Jan 15, 2011
End Date: Jan 02, 2015

Objective:
Determine the influence of external parasitic infestation on innate resistance in fish to bacterial infection and disease and the effect on the acquired immune responses to bacterial infection and disease on fish vaccination.

Approach:
Tilapia, catfish, pintado, pacu and other species of warmwater fish will be used to determine the effect of external parasitic infestation by Gyrodactylidae and Dactylogyridae monogeneans, trichodinids and/or Ichthyophthirius multifiliis on the innate immune responses to Streptococcus (S.) iniae, S. agalactiae and Aeromonas (A.) hydrophila under experimental infection and disease. The effect of these parasites on the protective acquired immune response to S. iniae, S. agalactiae, and A. hydrophila infection and disease will also be determined on fish vaccination against these bacterial pathogens. The techniques employed include those from the areas of parasitology, bacteriology, immunology, histology and molecular biology to quantitatively measure parasite and bacteria infectivity, pathology, ELISA antibody responses and molecular responses of immune and related genes in parasitized fish subjected to bacterial infections. The data will be subjected to statistical analysis.