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Freshwater Mussels Show Elevated Viral Richness and Intensity during a Mortality Event

Authors :
Jordan C. Richard
Eric M. Leis
Christopher D. Dunn
Cleyo Harris
Rose E. Agbalog
Lewis J. Campbell
Susan Knowles
Diane L. Waller
Joel G. Putnam
Tony L. Goldberg
Source :
Viruses, Vol 14, Iss 12, p 2603 (2022)
Publication Year :
2022
Publisher :
MDPI AG, 2022.

Abstract

Freshwater mussels (Unionida) are among the world’s most imperiled taxa, but the relationship between freshwater mussel mortality events and infectious disease is largely unstudied. We surveyed viromes of a widespread and abundant species (mucket, Actinonaias ligamentina; syn: Ortmanniana ligamentina) experiencing a mortality event of unknown etiology in the Huron River, Michigan, in 2019–2020 and compared them to viromes from mucket in a healthy population in the St. Croix River, Wisconsin and a population from the Clinch River, Virginia and Tennessee, where a mortality event was affecting the congeneric pheasantshell (Actinonaias pectorosa; syn: Ortmanniana pectorosa) population. We identified 38 viruses, most of which were associated with mussels collected during the Huron River mortality event. Viral richness and cumulative viral read depths were significantly higher in moribund mussels from the Huron River than in healthy controls from each of the three populations. Our results demonstrate significant increases in the number and intensity of viral infections for freshwater mussels experiencing mortality events, whereas individuals from healthy populations have a substantially reduced virome comprising a limited number of species at low viral read depths.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
19994915
Volume :
14
Issue :
12
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
Viruses
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.003e29888e5049d59940ff1b171abfb6
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3390/v14122603