| Abalone aquaculture only recently developed in western Europe, but already it has to face numerous pathologies. Since 1998, the natural and farm stocks of Haliotis tuberculata suffer regularly high mortalities, mainly due to the pathogenic bacterium, Vibrio harveyi. The vibriosis of the European abalone, in particular its macroscopic signs, and the conditions necessary for its development have been studied in detail by field and laboratory experiments. We have been able to show the importance of the interplay between water temperature (>17°C), animal physiology (reproduction period) and a pathogenic strain (harbouring the plasmid pVCR1) for the development of this abalone disease. A limited localisation study of the abalone target tissues (gills, muscle... |
