Diseases of Aquatic Organisms
DAO is a hybrid research journal on all aspects of disease phenomena in aquatic organisms.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/dao02032
copiedPathology, isolation and molecular characterisation of a ranavirus from the common midwife toad Alytes obstetricans on the Iberian Peninsula
- Ana Balseiro
- Kevin P. Dalton
- Ana del Cerro
- Isabel Marquez
- Andrew A. Cunningham
- Francisco Parra
- José M. Prieto
- R. Casais
ABSTRACT: We describe the pathology, isolation and characterisation of a virus responsible for an outbreak of a systemic haemorrhagic disease causing high mortality in tadpoles of the common midwife toad Alytes obstetricans in the ‘Picos de Europa’ National Park in northern Spain. The virus, provisionally designated as the common midwife toad virus (CMTV), was isolated from homogenates of visceral tissue from diseased toad tadpoles following inoculation on epithelioma papulosum cyprini (EPC) cells. Molecular characterisation of the virus, including sequence analysis of the DNA polymerase and major capsid protein genes, showed that the isolated virus was a ranavirus with marked sequence identity to other members of the genus Ranavirus. A rabbit antiserum raised against purified virions was prepared and used to definitively demonstrate systemic distribution of the virus in diseased tadpoles, indicating that the isolated virus was the primary pathogen.
KEYWORDS
Ana Balseiro (Co-author)
- SERIDA, Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, Laboratorio de Sanidad Animal,
Kevin P. Dalton (Co-author)
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Instituto Universitario de Biotecnología de Asturias, Universidad de Oviedo, 33006 Oviedo, Spain
Ana del Cerro (Co-author)
- SERIDA, Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, Laboratorio de Sanidad Animal,
Isabel Marquez (Co-author)
- SERIDA, Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, Laboratorio de Sanidad Animal,
Andrew A. Cunningham (Co-author)
- Institute of Zoology, Regent’s Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
Francisco Parra (Co-author)
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Instituto Universitario de Biotecnología de Asturias, Universidad de Oviedo, 33006 Oviedo, Spain
José M. Prieto (Co-author)
- SERIDA, Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, Laboratorio de Sanidad Animal,
R. Casais (Co-author)
- SERIDA, Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, Laboratorio de Sanidad Animal,