Distribution of an Invasive Aquatic Pathogen (Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Virus) in the Great Lakes and Its Relationship to Shipping

Viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) is a rhabdovirus found in fish from oceans of the northern hemisphere and freshwaters of Europe. It has caused extensive losses of cultured and wild fish and has become established in the North American Great Lakes. Large die-offs of wild fish in the Great L...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2010-04, Vol.5 (4), p.e10156-e10156
Main Authors: Bain, Mark B, Cornwell, Emily R, Hope, Kristine M, Eckerlin, Geofrey E, Casey, Rufina N, Groocock, Geoffrey H, Getchell, Rodman G, Bowser, Paul R, Winton, James R, Batts, William N, Cangelosi, Allegra, Casey, James W
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analysis
Animals
Aplodinotus grunniens
Aquatic animals
Aquatic ecosystems
Aquatic organisms
Biodiversity hot spots
Boating
Cell culture
Classification
Conservation
Disease transmission
Dispersion
Ecology/Ecosystem Ecology
Ecology/Marine and Freshwater Ecology
Ecosystem management
Ecosystems
Environmental protection
Esox masquinongy
Fish
Fisheries
Fishes - virology
Fresh water
Freshwaters
Geology
Government agencies
Great Lakes Region
Harbors
Hemorrhagic septicemia
Hemorrhagic Septicemia, Viral - epidemiology
Humans
Immunology
Lakes
Microbiology/Environmental Microbiology
Mortality
N gene
Native species
Natural resources
Neogobius melanostomus
Nonnative species
Northern Hemisphere
Novirhabdovirus - isolation & purification
Oceans
Oncorhynchus kisutch
Oncorhynchus mykiss
Pathogens
Perca flavescens
Phylogenetics
Polymerase chain reaction
Prevalence
Recreational facilities
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
Reverse transcription
Rhabdoviridae
Sepsis
Septicemia
Shellfish
Shipping
Ships
Shoreline protection
Shorelines
Studies
Trends
Veterinary colleges
Veterinary medicine
Viral infections
Virology/Emerging Viral Diseases
Virology/Persistence and Latency
Viruses
Water analysis
Water sampling
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Description
Summary:Viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) is a rhabdovirus found in fish from oceans of the northern hemisphere and freshwaters of Europe. It has caused extensive losses of cultured and wild fish and has become established in the North American Great Lakes. Large die-offs of wild fish in the Great Lakes due to VHSV have alarmed the public and provoked government attention on the introduction and spread of aquatic animal pathogens in freshwaters. We investigated the relations between VHSV dispersion and shipping and boating activity in the Great Lakes by sampling fish and water at sites that were commercial shipping harbors, recreational boating centers, and open shorelines. Fish and water samples were individually analyzed for VHSV using quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and cell culture assays. Of 1,221 fish of 17 species, 55 were VHSV positive with highly varied qRT-PCR titers (1 to 5,950,000 N gene copies). The detections of VHSV in fish and water samples were closely associated and the virus was detected in 21 of 30 sites sampled. The occurrence of VHSV was not related to type of site or shipping related invasion hotspots. Our results indicate that VHSV is widely dispersed in the Great Lakes and is both an enzootic and epizootic pathogen. We demonstrate that pathogen distribution information could be developed quickly and is clearly needed for aquatic ecosystem conservation, management of affected populations, and informed regulation of the worldwide trade of aquatic organisms.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0010156