A parasite outbreak in notothenioid fish in an Antarctic fjord.
iScience
; 25(7): 104588, 2022 Jul 15.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35800770
ABSTRACT
Climate changes can promote disease outbreaks, but their nature and potential impacts in remote areas have received little attention. In a hot spot of biodiversity on the West Antarctic Peninsula, which faces among the fastest changing climates on Earth, we captured specimens of two notothenioid fish species affected by large skin tumors at an incidence never before observed in the Southern Ocean. Molecular and histopathological analyses revealed that X-cell parasitic alveolates, members of a genus we call Notoxcellia, are the etiological agent of these tumors. Parasite-specific molecular probes showed that xenomas remained within the skin but largely outgrew host cells in the dermis. We further observed that tumors induced neovascularization in underlying tissue and detrimentally affected host growth and condition. Although many knowledge gaps persist about X-cell disease, including its mode of transmission and life cycle, these findings reveal potentially active biotic threats to vulnerable Antarctic ecosystems.
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Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Idioma:
En
Revista:
IScience
Año:
2022
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Estados Unidos