| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2205391 | Virology Reports | 2016 | 7 Pages |
•Australian aquaculture industry relies on their Asian counterparts for reports on grouper diseases.•The diagnosis for betanodavirus infections is based on histopathology and use of RT-qPCR.Isolation of virus is recommended by OIE, and is not pursued for routine diagnostic purposes.•The RNA1 and RNA2 segments were sequenced from isolated virus and nucleotide sequences were compared with GenBank sequences.•Both these sequences clustered within RGNNV genotype and showed high sequence identity to sequences affecting other grouper species.
Betanodavirus infections have a significant impact through direct losses and trade restrictions for aquaculture sectors in Australia. The giant grouper, Epinephelus lanceolatus, is a high-value, fast-growing species with significant aquaculture potential. With subacute to chronic mortalities reported from a commercial aquaculture facility in northern Queensland, the viral nervous necrosis in the affected fish was confirmed using a RT-qPCR followed by virus isolation using the SSN-1 cell line. The RNA1 and RNA2 segments were sequenced and nucleotide sequences were compared with betanodavirus sequences from GenBank. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that both these sequences clustered with sequences representing red spotted grouper nervous necrosis virus genotype and showed high sequence identity to virus sequences affecting other grouper species. This is the first report confirming infection by betanodavirus in E. lanceolatus from Australia with successful isolation of the virus in a cell culture system, and analysis of nearly full length RNA1 and RNA2 sequences.
