Experimental transmission and tissue tropism of Macrobrachium rosenbergii nodavirus (MrNV) and its associated extra small virus (XSV).

White tail disease (WTD) was found to be a serious problem in hatcheries and nursery ponds of Macrobrachium rosenbergii in India. The causative organisms have been identified as M. rosenbergii nodavirus (MrNV) and its associated extra small virus (XSV). Experimentally transmitted to healthy animals, they caused 100% mortality in post-larvae but failed to cause mortality in adult prawns. The RT-PCR assay revealed the presence of both viruses in moribund post-larvae and in gill tissue, head muscle, stomach, intestine, heart, hemolymph, pleopods, ovaries and tail muscle, but not in eyestalks or the hepatopancreas of experimentally infected adult prawns. The presence of these viruses in ovarian tissue indicates the possibility of vertical transmission. Pleopods have been found to be a suitable organ for detecting these viruses in brooders using the RT-PCR technique.