THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LERNAEA CYPRINACEA INFESTATIONS
IN CYPRINUS CARPIO AND ITS CONCURRENT BACTERIAL DISEASES
IN EGYPT.
Nahla R. El-khatib and Maha A. El-Hady
Fish Diseases Department, Animal Health Research Institute, Dokki, Giza.
Received 23/ 10/ 2012 Accepted 6/ 12/ 2012
Abstract
This study will focus on the potential infestation with Lernaea cyprinacea for concurrent infections with bacterial infection. Prevalence, seasonal variation, parasites burden, site of infestation and mean intensity of Lernaea cyprinacea were monitored on Cyprinus carpio from six fish farms during deferent seasons in Egypt.
Two bacterial isolates were recovered from Cyprinus carpio which pronounced infested with Lernaea cyprinacea identified as Flavobacterium
columnare, and Pseudomonas fluorescens.
The peak of infestation were in summer (81.7%) and then declined to (70%) in autumn follow by spring (55.7%) and no recorded infestation in winter (0%).
The differences in the infestation with copepods may be depending on the body length where the highest infection rate and intensity in 3- 8 cm which up to 35 cm with copepods in fish was moderate. The Relationship between body weight and L.cyprinacea in fish was also calculated. According to these results, the L.cyprinacea had significantly (P<0.05) highest prevalence in weight group of 0.5-399gm and lowest in weight groups of 400-899gm followed by <1500gm.
No bacterial isolates were found in trails to culture from gut of parasites.
Clinicopathological detection were found that L. cyprinacea attached to the base of the fins as a most common side of attachments followed by gills, head and fish body .the gills were the common site of immature stages.
The objective of the study concluded that Lernaea parasites not a vector to bacterial diseases of fish but mechanically increase the transmission efficiency of bacterial pathogens by creating many portals of entry.
