The effects of iron compounds on the virulence of Vibrio anguillarum in Japanese eels and ayu

Abstract

When Japanese eels (Anguilla japonica) were injected intramuscularly (IM) with ferric ammonium citrate (FAC) at a sublethal dose of 10 µg/g and followed by IM-injection with various doses of Vibrio anguillarum, FAC injection enhanced greatly the virulence of the pathogen to eels, lowering the LD₅₀ value from 10^7.9 to 10^4.2 CFU/100 g. Similar effects were obtained with ferrous sulfate and ferric chloride in eels. However, such a virulence-enhancing effect of FAC was scarcely observed in ayu (Plecoglossus altivelis), which has high susceptibility to the pathogen by nature. It was also found that addition of FAC (10 µg/ml) in fish sera accelerated the bacterial growth in vitro but the effect was much greater in eel serum than in ayu serum. The results of these in vivo and in vitro experiments demonstrated that the availability of free iron in host fish would have a significant influence on the pathogenesis of V. anguillarum infection.