The Segregation and Elimination of Radioand Fluorescent-Belled Marine Bacteria from the Haemolymph of the Shore Crab, Carcinus Maenas

The dynamics of clearance, segregation and elimination of a marine bacterium, Moraxella sp., by the shore crab, Carcinus maenas (L.) has been studied utilizing fluorescent and radiolabelling techniques. In addition to the gills, the hepatopancreas was a major site of bacterial accumulation with sequestration occurring within haemocyte clumps and groups of stationary cells in this organ. The heart, excretory organ and subcuticular tissues also incorporated bacteria, but to a lesser extent. By the first day post-injection, many of the segregated micro-organisms had been removed from the organs. This latter process was not due to the exodus of laden haemocytes or of intact cell clumps from the host but seemed to result from lytic action by the host blood cells. Little material arising from such bacterial/haemocytic interaction was, however, immediately excreted, and much was relocated in the general body tissues as well as the gill nephrocytes.

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Deep Demersal Fish Assemblage Structure in the Porcupine Seabight (Eastern North Atlantic): Results of Single Warp Trawling at Lower Slope to Abyssal Soundings

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s002531540005164x ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 71 (2) ◽

pp. 359-373 ◽

Cited By ~ 79

Author(s):

N. R. Merrett ◽

R. L. Haedrich ◽

J. D. M. Gordon ◽

M. Stehmann

Keyword(s):

Intact Cell ◽

Carcinus Maenas ◽

Demersal Fish ◽

Shore Crab ◽

Fish Assemblage Structure ◽

Body Tissues ◽

Bacterial Accumulation ◽

Eastern North Atlantic ◽

Host Blood ◽

Micro Organisms

The dynamics of clearance, segregation and elimination of a marine bacterium, Moraxella sp., by the shore crab, Carcinus maenas (L.) has been studied utilizing fluorescent and radiolabelling techniques. In addition to the gills, the hepatopancreas was a major site of bacterial accumulation with sequestration occurring within haemocyte clumps and groups of stationary cells in this organ. The heart, excretory organ and subcuticular tissues also incorporated bacteria, but to a lesser extent. By the first day post-injection, many of the segregated micro-organisms had been removed from the organs. This latter process was not due to the exodus of laden haemocytes or of intact cell clumps from the host but seemed to result from lytic action by the host blood cells. Little material arising from such bacterial/haemocytic interaction was, however, immediately excreted, and much was relocated in the general body tissues as well as the gill nephrocytes.

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The Antibacterial Activity of Haemocyte Clumps in the Gills of the Shore Crab,Carcinus Maenas

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s0025315400019366 ◽

1985 ◽

Vol 65 (4) ◽

pp. 857-870 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

K. N. White ◽

N. A. Ratcliffe ◽

M. Rossa

Keyword(s):

Antibacterial Activity ◽

Carcinus Maenas ◽

Host Cells ◽

Shore Crab ◽

Phagocytic Cells ◽

Lytic Action ◽

Important Means ◽

Micro Organisms

INTRODUCTIONThe shore crab,Carcinus maenas(L.), rapidly clears bacteria from the circulation to the tissues by virtue of the phagocytic and clumping capacity of circulating haemocytes and fixed phagocytic cells (Smith & Ratcliffe, 1978, 1980a,b; White & Ratcliffe, 1982). If re-infection resulting from the re-entry of sequestered micro-organisms into the circulation is to be prevented then the host must eliminate or incapacitate the foreign particles in some way. The migration of laden host cells to the exterior does not appear to be an important means of disposal of segregated non-self material in the Crustacea (Merril, Mongeon & Fisher, 1979; White & Ratcliffe, 1982), so that the ability to resist infection must reside with the cellular killing capacity, perhaps augmented by humoral antibacterial activity. Indeed, our earlier observations on the disappearance of bacteria fromC. maenasgills seem to indicate that their loss resulted from the lytic action of host haemocytes (White & Ratcliffe, 1982), as does the elimination of micro-organisms from the hepatopancreas of the crayfish,Parachaeraps bicarinatus(McKay & Jenkin, 1970a).

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Variation of antibacterial activity in the haemocytes of the shore crab,Carcinus maenas, with temperature

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s0025315400090238 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 74 (4) ◽

pp. 979-982 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

June R.S. Chisholm ◽

Valerie J. Smith

Keyword(s):

Antibacterial Activity ◽

Protein Concentration ◽

Marine Bacterium ◽

Sea Water ◽

Carcinus Maenas ◽

Shore Crab ◽

Immune Parameters ◽

Shellfish Culture ◽

Aquarium Water ◽

One Year

The effects of environmental temperature on haemocyte antibacterial activity were investigated for the shore crab,Carcinus maenas.Haemocyte lysate supernatants (HLS), prepared from groups of five animals (sampled at monthly intervals over one year and covering a range of temperatures) were assayed for their ability to reduce viable counts of the marine bacteriumPsychrobacter immobilisNQMB 308 during 4 h incubation. Parallel measurements were made of HLS protein concentration, total haemocyte count and ambient aquarium sea-water temperature. Despite wide variation in the values derived for each parameter, the results show that powerful antibacterial activity was present in HLS for all months except February and August, when respective aquarium water temperatures were at their lowest and highest for the year. This emphasizes the importance of environmental factors in immune capability: a phenomenon of significance not only to commercial shellfish culture but also for the use of immune parameters as biomarkers of environmental disturbance.

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