Immunogenicity of vaccines from a virulent and an a virulent strain of Aeromonas salmonicida

Abstract. Injected vaccines consisting of formalin-killed cells and extracellular antigens prepared from a virulent and an avirulent strain of Aeromonas salmonicida were tested for their efficacy in protecting juvenile coho salmon. Oncorhychus kisutch (Walbaum). Against experimental furunculosis following active and passive immunization. Sera used in the passive immunization experiments were raised in subadult coho salmon and in rabbits. Results indicated that the avirulent strain was inferior to the virulent strain in its immunogenicity for coho salmon. Thus, even though avirulent cells possessed at least one immunogen–an immunogen that was show in passive immunization experiments to be well recognized by rabbits–the immunogen was only inefficiently protection when vaccinated with avirulent cells. Furher, extracellular antigens of the avirulent strain were not protective for coho salmon even though they elicited the production of anti- A. salmonicida agglutinins. In contrast, the killed cells and extracellular antigens of the virulent strain were both immunogenic in coho salmon. By passively immunizing coho salmon with rabbit sera raised against the virulent and the virulent strain produced at least two immunogens, only one of which was shared in common with the avirulent strain. The extra immunogen possessed by the virulent strain is presumably responsible for its superior immunogenicity in coho salmon; the immunogen had the properties of a protein and is believed to be the A-protein.