The pathogenicity of two V. penaeicida strains, AM101 and KH-1, with different geographic origin, and V. nigripulchritudo strain AM102, were investigated in juvenile blue shrimp species Litopenaeus stylirostris. Alive bacteria and protein fractions (PFs) obtained from cell-free supernatants (CFS) were used in experimental challenges. Strains AM102, AM101, and KH-1 produced respectively 60, 54 and 12% mortality at 96h after infection using 104 cfu mL-1 of bacterial suspension. Exocellular toxin-like factors were evidenced in CFS from the New Caledonian strains (AM102 and AM101) but not the Japanese strain (KH-1). At 48h post injection of each CFS, mortality rates were respectively 96,98 and 5% when these strains were cultivated at 20°C, whereas only O,16... |