Systemic Exophiala Infection in a Giant Frog Fish (Antennarius

Systemic Exophiala sp. infection
in a giant frogfish
(Antennarius commersoni )
Case: D09-431
Susan B. Fogelson, MS
Scott P. Terrell DVM, DACVP
Signalment and history
¾8
month old giant frogfish of unknown sex
¾ 2 month history of an abscess on dorsum
¾ Recurrence of abscess after medical
treatment
¾ Patient died under anesthesia
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Gross findings
¾
Integument:
A 3.5x3.5x0.5cm swelling caudal to the head
where an “abscess” had been previously closed with
sutures
¾
Gills:
Lamellae had multiple 2-4mm diameter light tan
foci.
¾
Coelomic Mesentery:
Two light tan 3mm diameter plaques
¾
Heart:
Multiple 2-4mm light tan raised foci on the
ventricle
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Gross findings
¾
Liver:
Diffusely pale tan to white
¾
Spleen:
Enlarged and diffusely dark red on cut surface
¾
Kidney:
The anterior right kidney was diffusely enlarged to
4.5x3x1.5 cm and the left was enlarged to
4.5x3.5x1.8 cm
Both are multi-nodular and pale pink
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Head Kidney
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Renal Tubule and Vascular Lesions
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Fungal Hyphae
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Fungal Hyphae in Head Kidney (GMS)
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Gills
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Gills
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Heart
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Morphological diagnoses
Head Kidney:
¾
Vasculitis and vascular necrosis, acute, diffuse,
marked, with intravascular pigmented fungal
hyphae
¾
Nephritis, necrotizing, acute, multifocal, severe
with intralesional fungal hyphae
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Differential diagnoses for
pigmented fungi in fish
¾
Scolecobasidium humicola
¾ Phoma herbarum
¾ Exophiala sp.
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Exophiala sp. diagnosis
¾ Culture
¾ Ultrastructural
¾ PCR
z
examination
assays
Multiple tissues tested positive for Exophiala
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Exophiala sp.
¾ Naturally
occurring in plant materials, soil
and decaying wood
¾ Exophiala is a dematiaceous fungus with
septate hyphae
¾ Two important pathogenic species have
been identified in fish
z
z
E. salmonis
E. pisciphila
E. salmonis
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www.plantpath.cornell.edu
Exophiala sp. in fish
¾
¾
Cultured fish - striped jack (Pseudocaranx dentex),
atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), cutthroat trout
(Oncorhynchus clarki) and channel catfish (Ictalurus
punctatus).
Captive marine fish - weedy (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus)
and leafy seadragons (Phycodurus eques).
www.naturecrusaders.wordpress.com
www.scuba-equipment-usa.com/
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Exophiala sp. in fish
¾
Cutaneous, subcutaneous or disseminated
infections.
¾ Infiltration of skin, parenchyma, and
connective tissue with fungal hyphae causing
necrotizing granulomatous inflammation.
¾ Vascular infiltration causing
inflammation and infarction. Courtesy of Dr. Lisa Farina
¾ Kidney enlargement
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Acknowledgements
¾ Lisa
Farina DVM, DACVP
¾ Deb Mahapatra, DVM
¾ UF Histology Laboratory
¾ Aquarium team, The Living Seas
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Questions???
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