Skin mucus proteins of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in response to mucosal vaccination and challenge with Flavobacterium psychrophilum

Abstract

First paragraph: Flavobacterium psychrophilum is one of the most important pathogens affecting rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) worldwide at the fry stage of their life cycle. Studies have shown disruption of the fish's skin mucus to be a critical element in the establishment of F. psychrophilum infection in rainbow trout (Henriksen et al., 2013; Madetoja et al., 2000; Martínez et al., 2004). Mucus is the first barrier (biochemical and physical) of the fish, playing a vital role in the protection against pathogens, and contains various antibacterial and inflammatory factors such as lysozyme, immunoglobulin, complement, lectins, acute-phase proteins and proteases (Shunsuke, 2016; Subramanian et al., 2007). Furthermore, the study of external fish mucus provides non-lethal alternatives for the early detection of infections.