Carp virus and Gaia
- Japan Times: 3 Nov 2003 [edited]
Herpes virus kills 860 tons of carp
About 860 tons of cultured carp have died since October in 2 lakes
Ibaraki Prefecture from herpesvirus in the first such incident in
the prefectural government said on Sunday.
The carp began to die in early October 2003, and the number of
jumped in the middle of the month, according to prefectural
virus has been detected in samples taken from the dead carp. The
has not been able to locate the route of infection. The damage from
deaths of some 660 tons of carp in Lake Kasumigaura and another 200
Lake Kitaura is estimated at 150 million yen about USD 1 365 000],
The virus cannot be transmitted to humans, and consumption of
would not have any ill effects, the officials said. The virus was
detected in 1997 in Israel and has been found in Belgium, Britain,
Indonesia, the Netherlands, Taiwan, and the United States. In an
prevent infections, Japan has imposed restrictions on carp imports
14 Jul [2004?].
[Koi herpesvirus has been associated with devastating losses of
(_Cyprinus carpio carpio_) and Koi (_Cyprinus carpio koi_) in North
America, Europe, Israel, and Asia. Koi carp are an ornamental
carp propagated originally in ancient Rome and later for their
appeal in Japan. In rent times they have been spread worldwide by
unregulated trade in ornamental fish. The herpesvirus isolated from
carp, and currently designated Koi herpesvirus, is distinct from
herpesvirus known as Cyprinid herpesvirus isolated from common carp.
viruses cause disease and economic loss in both subspecies of carp.
herpesviruses are distinctive, however, in that Koi herpesvirus
significant economic losses among all ages of both common carp and
carp, whereas cyprinid herpesvirus causes losses predominantly among
less than 2 months old.
Virus infections in poikilothermic vertebrates can be greatly
environmental temperatures. O Gilad and colleagues (J Gen Virol
observed that optimal growth of Koi herpesvirus in a Koi fin cell
occurred at temperatures from 15 to 25 degrees C. There was no
minimal growth at 4, 10, 30, or 37 degrees C. Experimental
Koi carp with Koi herpesvirus at a water temperature of 23 degrees C
resulted in a cumulative mortality of 95 per cent. Disease
rapidly but with lower mortality (89 to 95 per cent) at 28 degrees
Mortality (85 per cent) also occurred at 18 degrees C but not at 13
C. Shifting virus-exposed fish from 13 to 23 degrees C resulted in
onset of mortality.
Gilad et al compared virion polypeptides and genomic restriction
of 7 geographically diverse isolates of Koi herpesvirus and found
one exception they represented a homogeneous group. They concluded
single strain of Koi herpesvirus had been spread worldwide by the
unregulated trade in ornamental fish. They suggest that disease
regulations should be implemented urgently in view of the importance
common carp as a major protein source in some parts of the world. -
Koi herpesvirus - worldwide: etiology 20030929.2450
Fish die-off - Bangladesh: RFI 20030422.0983
Aeromonas hydrophila?, fish - Indonesia (West Java) 20020719.4798
Koi herpesvirus, carp - Indonesia: suspected, OIE 20020630.4639
Fish die-off - Bangladesh 20010331.0648]
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Notice how the virus is temperature dependant--again an indication of
Gaia context. Imagine chaotic input causing immune stress, than
infection and spred, and a feed back particle accumulation of virus
in the air, which impacts cirrus. Again, a complex symbiotic
interaction between virus and fish to produce a living earth.