Lyons
M. Maille
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Lethal marine snow : pathogen of bivalve mollusc concealed in marine aggregates
Lyons
M. Maille
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Preprint
We evaluated marine aggregates as environmental reservoirs for a thraustochytrid pathogen, Quahog Parasite
Unknown (QPX), of the northern quahog or hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria. Positive results from in situ
hybridization and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis confirm the presence of QPX in marine aggregates collected
from coastal embayments in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where QPX outbreaks have occurred. In laboratory
experiments, aggregates were observed and recorded by entering a quahog’s pallial cavity, thereby delivering embedded
particles from the water column to its benthic bivalve host. The occurrence of pathogen-laden aggregates
in coastal areas experiencing repeated disease outbreaks suggests a means for the spread and survival of pathogens
between epidemics and provides a specific target for environmental monitoring of those pathogens.