Mycobacterium marinum: Inquiry into this rare disease

[lombard0]

Mycobacterium marinum: Inquiry into this rare disease

If a fish got this bacteria, how long before it shows any physical signs (weight loss, non-healing open ulcers, a distended abdomen, loss of appetite, fin erosion, unusual coloration, pop-eye, spinal deformities, listless behavior, etc.) of infection? Do fish develop some sort of immunity with this kind of bacterial infection? My concern is that if it's been years that I haven't added any new LRs, LS, corals, inverts, fishes, etc. into my tank/s, would it still be possible that this kind of bacteria present in my tank? Also, it's also been years that I lost a single fish due to unknown reason. I feed DIY food for fishes and corals by the way, but I always keep them in the freezer.

Lastly, since carbon dosing (sugar, vinegar, vodka, etc.) causes bacterial bloom, would this type of bacteria somehow affected by the dosing as well?

Inputs please.


Cheers!

 

[JHemdal]

lombardO,

Actually, this isn't a rare disease at all, it is just difficult to isolate in culture, and most fish don't die from it until late in life. It is the number one killer in some (many?) fish collections, but it is almost always attributed to "old age".

It is found in nature in soil and uncooked seafoods, so its presence in aquariums is virtually assured. In cases where it has NOT be isolated in aquariums, it generally means that the proper culture was not performed, this bacteria is very slow growing, and it is difficult to culture because in the 6+ weeks it takes to grow, other bacteria tend to over-grow it on the test plates.

I know of no effective treatment for it, and besides, if you could "cure" the fish, they would get re-infected the next time it got introduced to the tank through feeding, etc.

It can become a huge problem in some fish collections because some species of fish are very sensitive to it; notably seahorses, pupfish, pirate perch and Haplochromine cichlids. In these fish, even middle-age specimens will die. I manage it by breeding the population fast enough to "outrun" the tendancy for it to kill off the older fish.

I can't answer your carbon dosing question with certainty, but my opinion would be that it would not cause a problem, becuase the other bacteria are so much more aggressive in their growth rates, they would get the carbon first (not to say that this in itself might not cause prolems).

Finally, it is a zoonotic disease and can be transmitted to humans. It doesn't flourish in the human system (98 degrees is to warm for it) but it can cause lesions in the extremities. Wear gloves and never siphon by mouth, and if you think you might have immune system problems, check with a doctor.


Jay

 

[lombard0]

Thanks so much Jay for a very informative reply.

You said that this type bacteria are also found on uncooked seafoods. Can they survive in a freezer at some point (I freeze all my DIY frozen food for at least 3 days by the way)? Also, will a UV or Ozonizer be a good solution in ridding off (well, at least the free-swimming ones) this type of bacteria, or these gadgets wont do harm to them?

I do wear gloves whenever I dip my hands in the tank (well, on rare occasions I forgot to ).


Thanks again!

 

[JHemdal]

lombadrdO,

Not, it does not seem that freezing can kill the spores. Ozone will not help. UV can only help if it is placed between tanks, and then it only helps to reduce the numbers going from one tank to the next. Since the pathway can be from the food to the fish directly, any bacteria there would not be exposed to UV light.

Jay

 

[lombard0]

Copy that Jay.


Much appreciated!

 

[wooden_reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15528190#post15528190 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by JHemdal
lombardO,

Actually, this isn't a rare disease at all, it is just difficult to isolate in culture, and most fish don't die from it until late in life. It is the number one killer in some (many?) fish collections, but it is almost always attributed to "old age".

It is found in nature in soil and uncooked seafoods, so its presence in aquariums is virtually assured. In cases where it has NOT be isolated in aquariums, it generally means that the proper culture was not performed, this bacteria is very slow growing, and it is difficult to culture because in the 6+ weeks it takes to grow, other bacteria tend to over-grow it on the test plates.

I know of no effective treatment for it, and besides, if you could "cure" the fish, they would get re-infected the next time it got introduced to the tank through feeding, etc.

It can become a huge problem in some fish collections because some species of fish are very sensitive to it; notably seahorses, pupfish, pirate perch and Haplochromine cichlids. In these fish, even middle-age specimens will die. I manage it by breeding the population fast enough to "outrun" the tendancy for it to kill off the older fish.

I can't answer your carbon dosing question with certainty, but my opinion would be that it would not cause a problem, becuase the other bacteria are so much more aggressive in their growth rates, they would get the carbon first (not to say that this in itself might not cause prolems).

Finally, it is a zoonotic disease and can be transmitted to humans. It doesn't flourish in the human system (98 degrees is to warm for it) but it can cause lesions in the extremities. Wear gloves and never siphon by mouth, and if you think you might have immune system problems, check with a doctor.


Jay

+1

Not rare at all. In fact, very common.

This is in the class of internal bacterial infection. This disease is highly related to diet and water quality. UV also helps slow the spread.