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Twardek WM, Chapman JM, Miller KM, Beere MC, Li S, Kaukinen KH, Danylchuk AJ, Cooke SJ. Evidence of a hydraulically challenging reach serving as a barrier for the upstream migration of infection-burdened adult steelhead. CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY 2019; 7:coz023. [PMID: 31191906 PMCID: PMC6553125 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/coz023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2019] [Revised: 04/15/2019] [Accepted: 04/30/2019] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Anadromous fishes such as steelhead trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, are exposed to a suite of infectious agents and migratory challenges during their freshwater migrations. We assessed infectious agent load and richness and immune system gene expression in gill tissue of Bulkley River (British Columbia, CA) steelhead captured at and upstream of a migratory barrier to evaluate whether infectious burdens impacted migration success. We further considered the potential influences of water temperature, sex and fish size on host infectious agents and transcription profiles. There were eight infectious agents detected in steelhead gill tissue, with high prevalence of the bacteria Candidatus Branchiomonas cysticola (80%) and Flavobacterium psychrophilum (95%) and the microparasite Sphaerothecum destruens (53%). Fish sampled at the falls had significantly greater relative loads of Ca. B. cysticola and F. psychrophilum, higher infectious agent richness and differential gene expression compared to fish captured upstream. Flavobacterium psychrophilum was only associated with immune gene expression (particularly humoral immunity) of fish sampled at the falls, while water temperature was positively correlated with genes involved in the complement system, metabolic stress and oxidative stress for fish captured upstream. This work highlights interesting differences in agent-host interactions across fisheries and suggests that hydraulic barriers may reduce the passage of fish with the heaviest infectious agent burdens, emphasizing the selective role of areas of difficult passage. Further, this work expands our knowledge of infectious agent prevalence in wild salmonids and provides insight into the relationships between infectious agents and host physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- W M Twardek
- Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology and Institute of Environmental and Interdisciplinary Science, Carleton University, Colonel By Dr., Ottawa, ON, Canada
- Corresponding author: Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology and Institute of Environmental and Interdisciplinary Science, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6, Canada. Tel: +613 986 3786.
| | - J M Chapman
- Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology and Institute of Environmental and Interdisciplinary Science, Carleton University, Colonel By Dr., Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - K M Miller
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological Station, Hammond Bay Rd, Nanaimo, BC, Canada
| | - M C Beere
- British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development, Fisheries Branch, Alfred Ave, Smithers, BC, Canada
| | - S Li
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological Station, Hammond Bay Rd, Nanaimo, BC, Canada
| | - K H Kaukinen
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological Station, Hammond Bay Rd, Nanaimo, BC, Canada
| | - A J Danylchuk
- Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Holdsworth Way, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - S J Cooke
- Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology and Institute of Environmental and Interdisciplinary Science, Carleton University, Colonel By Dr., Ottawa, ON, Canada
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