Bacteria in the culture of the scallop Argopecten purpuratus (Lamarck, 1819)

The scallop Argopecten purpuratus is one of themajor resources of commercial importance in Chilean aquaculture. One of themajor limiting factors for the culture of this species has been mass mortalityoccurring during production of juvenile seed organisms where massmortality of veliger larvae has been attributed to the presence of pathogenicbacteria in scallops and hatchery systems. Bacteriological studies havedemonstrated that in addition to bacterial pathogens, beneficial bacterialspecies capable of improving scallop larval survival may also be isolated fromscallops and hatchery systems. Research has been carried out on thedetermination of the feasibility of implementing beneficial bacteria in thecontrol of culture pathogens, thus reducing the need for chemotherapeuticmethods. The present review analyzes bacteriological research data on thedifferent roles of bacteria associated with scallop culture and discussesrecentdata on the implementation of beneficial bacteria in biological control ofpathogens in larval mass cultures of Argopectenpurpuratus.