Black spot gill syndrome in the northern shrimp, Pandalus borealis, caused by the parasitic ciliate Synophrya sp.

Black spot gill syndrome in the northern shrimp, Pandalus borealis, is caused by an apostome ciliate, Synophrya sp., found within the gill lamellae. Whole mount staining, thin section histology, electron microscopy, and molecular studies were carried out on infected gills. The Synophrya 18S rRNA from Pandalus borealis (Genbank accession no. KX906568) and from two portunid crab species, Achelous spinimanus (Genbank accession no. MH395150) and Achelous gibbesii (Genbank accession no. MH395151) was sequenced. Phylogenetic analyses confirmed the identity of these ciliates as apostomes. The 18S rRNA sequence recovered from P. borealis shared 95% nucleotide similarity with the sequences recovered from the portunid crab species suggesting that it is a different species of Synophrya. The invasive hypertrophont stages, with a distinctive macronuclear reticulum, ranged in size from 300 to 400 µm with as many as 5 large forms/mm2 of gill tissue. Histotrophic hypertrophont stages and hypertomont stages were observed in these studies. The presence of the parasite was linked to the formation of melanized nodules (up to 9 nodules/mm2 of gill tissue) by the host and in some cases to extensive necrosis. Other studies have reported Synophrya sp. infections in P. borealis from Greenland, Labrador and Newfoundland, but further studies are necessary to determine the prevalence of this parasite in the dense schools of northern shrimp in the North Atlantic. Questions remain as to the possibility of epizootics of this pathogen and its impact on northern shrimp populations.