A parasite outbreak in notothenioid fish in an Antarctic fjord

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 fis...

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Published in:iScience 2022-07, Vol.25 (7), p.104588-104588, Article 104588
Main Authors: Desvignes, Thomas, Lauridsen, Henrik, Valdivieso, Alejandro, Fontenele, Rafaela S., Kraberger, Simona, Murray, Katrina N., Le François, Nathalie R., Detrich, H. William, Kent, Michael L., Varsani, Arvind, Postlethwait, John H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal biology
Bioclimatology
Biological sciences
Ecology, environment
Life Sciences
Microbiology
Microbiology parasite
Parasitology
Veterinary medicine and animal Health
Zoology
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Summary: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. [Display omitted] •A worrisome disease outbreak affected fish in an Antarctic Peninsula fjord•A parasitic alveolate in the Xcellidae family caused large skin tumors•We describe the genus Notoxcellia with two species, Notoxcellia coronata and N. picta•These parasites have detrimental effects on fish host physiology and health Biological sciences; Zoology; Microbiology; Parasitology; Microbiology parasite
ISSN:2589-0042
2589-0042
DOI:10.1016/j.isci.2022.104588