Dietary modulation of humoral immune response and anaemia in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), infected with Cryptobia salmositica Katz, 1951

Abstract. The humoral immune response in Cryptobia-salmositica -infected rainbow trout on pantothenic-acid-deficient/low protein (19%) diets was depressed. There was no significant difference in parasitaemia between fish on the pantothenic-acid-deficient diet and those on the supplemented diet; however, the parasitaemia in fish on 19% protein diet was significantly lower than that in fish on 38% protein diet. The low humoral responders, in contrast to the high responders (on 38 and 29% protein diets), had less severe anaemia and the packed cell volume at the end of the experiment was not significantly different from that at 2 weeks post-infection. Red cells from the low responders were Coombs' negative while those from the high responders were Coombs' positive from 4 to 6 weeks post-infection. The authors suggest that, in the low responders, red cell destruction is essentially due to the'lytic component' of the parasite antigen in contrast to the involvement of both the ^llytic' and the 'immune complex-forming' components in the high responders. The present study indicates that certain deficient diets are useful in modulating the parasitaemia and also in decreasing red cell destruction. Therefore, dietary modification may help in altering the course of such infections and the progression of the disease.