Infestation of commercially reared salmonids with the salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis, is a large problem for the fish farming industries in Scotland, Ireland and Norway. Lice infestations cause high fish mortalities and losses in revenue for the fish farmer. Conventional treatment of lice infestation involves the use of organophosphate insecticides which are limited in their efficacy against lice, as well as being highly toxic to the flora and fauna which surround the sea cages. We have investigated the possibility of producing a recombinant vaccine against L. salmonis based on immunisation of farmed salmonids with 'concealed' antigens from lice. Murine monoclonal antibodies were raised against L. salmonis antigens using standard cell fusion techniques. The antibodies were screened by immunohistochemistry in order to establish the location of the recognised antigen in L. salmonis sections. We used the monoclonal antibodies to screen L. salmonis DNA libraries constructed in gt11 and ZAP in order to isolate the DNA coding for each recognised antigen. A monoclonal antibody was produced which showed strong immunoreactivity with cuticle-associated areas in lice sections. This antibody was subsequently shown to recognise the enzyme chitinase from L. salmonis. We have expressed recombinant proteins from the isolated phage which have been used in immunisation trials on the Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Lice feeding on fish immunised with three of the recombinant antigens, displayed abnormal egg development and an overall decrease in egg number. We are currently retesting these antigens in a larger immunisation trial. We have also used polymerase chain reaction technology to look for known genes in L. salmonis and have identified a member of the wnt gene family, wnt-5a.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:592908 |
| Date | January 1994 |
| Creators | Labus, Marie B. |
| Publisher | University of Aberdeen |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://digitool.abdn.ac.uk/R?func=search-advanced-go&find_code1=WSN&request1=AAIU539163 |
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