Bioencapsulation of Therapeutic Quantities of the Antibacterial Romet-30 in Nauplii of the Brine Shrimp Artemia and in the Nematode Panagrellus redivivus

Nauplii of the brine shrimp, Artemia , and cultures of the soil nematode, Panagrellus redivivus , were fed a suspension of the water-insoluble antibacterial Romet-30 (sulfadimethoxine plus ormetoprim) to determine if they could be used as a mechanism for delivery of the drug to larval penaeid shrimp.
Romet-30 was added to groups of brine shrimp nauplii and nematodes in 1 L beakers to achieve a concentration of 3 mg of drug per ml of seawater. After a 4 h uptake period, predetermined numbers of organisms were assayed for antibiotic content using the micro-plate diffusion method and a Romet-30 sensitive strain of Vibrio alginolyticus as the indicator. The resulting zones of inhibition were compared to that of a standard Kirby-Bauer sensitivity disc containing 25 μg of the drug that was placed on each plate as standard control. Negative controls consisted of equal numbers of nauplii and nematodes that were not exposed to the antibiotic. Artemia nauplii and nematodes accumulated approximately 0.1 μg of the drug per nauplius and approximately 0.25 μg per nematode. They exhibited no signs of toxicity from exposure to the drug and contained the antibiotic in sufficient quantity to provide a theoretical therapeutic dose of the drug when fed to penaeid larvae.
In subsequent tests, normal and diseased larval Penaeus stylirostris readily accepted Romet-30 enriched Artemia . Diseased larvae fed the drug in this manner exhibited a statistically greater overall survival and a greater survival to the post-larval stage by Student's t -test at the 5% significance level.     

An Epizootic of Vibriosis in Ecuadorian Pond-Reared Penaeus vannamei Boone (Crustacea: Decapoda)

A massive ephtic of vibriosis, named "sindroma gaviota" (or sea gull syndrome = SGS) by local shrimp fanners, began in November 1989 and continued through May 1990 in nursery and grow-out ponds in a number of shrimp farms located in the Gulf of Guaynquil near Cunyaquil, Ecuador. The level of cumulative mortalities ranged from slight in some ponds to more than 90% in others. Examination of affected shrimp, Penaeus vannamei Boone, led to the isolation of several closely related Vibrio species. The predominant species were identified as Vibrio parahaemolyticus, V. vulnificus , and V. alginolyticus using the API-NFT system. Several of the strains exhibited a transient luminescence and some were positive for urease, an unusual trait for these species. Comparisons of the antimicrobial sensitivity patterns between farm and hatchery isolates from 1989–1990 and hatchery isolates from 1987–1989 indicate that the 1989–1990 pond isolates were not of hatchery origin. The epizootic coincided with the second year of a severe drought in Ecuador. Thus, the discharge of fresh water by the Guayas River was reduced and salinities and relative nutrient concentrations were elevated in the Gulf of Guaynquil. These environmental conditions were ideal for the increased growth of the causative vibrios in the estuarine waters and are believed to be factors that contributed to the 1989–1990 SGS epizootic.