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Diseases of Aquatic Organisms

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DAO 138:35-40 (2020)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/dao03450

First report of an idiopathic partial tail myonecrosis in European brown shrimp Crangon crangon caught in the North Sea

Xavier H. C. Vermeersch1,2,*, Annemie Decostere2, Geertrui Vlaemynck1, Koen Chiers2

1Technology and Food Science Unit, Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO), Brusselsesteenweg 370, 9090 Melle, Belgium
2Department of Pathology, Bacteriology and Avian Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium
*Corresponding author:

ABSTRACT: The European brown shrimp Crangon crangon is an abundant and commercially important species in the North Sea. Currently, there is interest in landing live shrimp to provide fresh animals for a growing market in live brown shrimp. During 4 survival studies between 2014 and 2016, shrimp were collected from commercial trawlers and maintained alive in off-shore facilities. From Day 1 onwards, a minority of shrimp (~2.24%) developed a white discoloration of the abdominal muscles and a depigmentation of the distal part of the abdomen, along with paralysis of the affected tissues and appendages. As the symptoms progressed, a circumferential blackish delineation appeared, creating a distinct boundary between healthy and necrotic tissue. Affected shrimp survived up to 3 wk, although in several animals the distal part of the tail was completely lost. Histological and electron microscopical examination confirmed the myonecrosis. A secondary bacterial invasion of the necrotic muscle was observed in some animals. RT-PCR for infectious myonecrosis virus was negative. The condition appears not to be contagious, based on the feeding of healthy shrimp with necrotic tissue of affected shrimp. Based on these observations, a mechanical cause inflicted during the catching process is proposed.


KEY WORDS: Brown shrimp · Myonecrosis · White tail disease · Fisheries


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Cite this article as: Vermeersch XHC, Decostere A, Vlaemynck G, Chiers K (2020) First report of an idiopathic partial tail myonecrosis in European brown shrimp Crangon crangon caught in the North Sea. Dis Aquat Org 138:35-40. https://doi.org/10.3354/dao03450

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