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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Immunol.
Sec. Comparative Immunology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1528721
This article is part of the Research Topic Immunomics in Aquaculture: Deciphering the Immune Landscape of Aquacultured Animals Through Omics Technologies View all articles

Comparative transcriptome analysis reveals a serotype-specific immune response in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) infected with Streptococcus agalactiae

Provisionally accepted
Renan José Casarotto Appel Renan José Casarotto Appel 1,2Karine Nicole Siqueira Karine Nicole Siqueira 2Ioannis Konstantinidis Ioannis Konstantinidis 1Maria Isabel Mello Martins Maria Isabel Mello Martins 3Rajesh Joshi Rajesh Joshi 4Lucienne Garcia Pretto-Giordano Lucienne Garcia Pretto-Giordano 5*Laurival Antônio Vilas-Boas Laurival Antônio Vilas-Boas 2*Jorge Manuel de Oliveira Fernandes Jorge Manuel de Oliveira Fernandes 1,6*
  • 1 Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, Nord University, Bodø, Norway
  • 2 Department of General Biology, State University of Londrina, Londrina, Paraná, Brazil
  • 3 Department of Veterinary Clinics, State University of Londrina, Londrina, Brazil
  • 4 Genomar (Norway), Oslo, Norway
  • 5 Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, State University of Londrina, Londrina, Paraná, Brazil
  • 6 Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM-CSIC), Barcelona, Balearic Islands, Spain

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Streptococcus agalactiae is a major causative agent of streptococcosis in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and understanding its etiology is important to ensure the sustainable development of global tilapia farming. Our research group recently observed contrasting disease patterns in animals infected with two different S. agalactiae serotypes (Ib and III). To better understand the basis for these divergent responses, we analyzed the brain transcriptome of Nile tilapia following bacterial exposure. Our findings revealed significant variation in the expression of genes involved in immune (e.g., CD209 antigen, granulin, C-X-C motif chemokine 10, prostacyclin synthase, and interleukins) and neuroendocrine (e.g., mmp13a, mmp9, brain aromatase, and pmch) pathways. The serotype Ib strain seems promptly recognized by the host, triggering a potent inflammatory response, whereas the serotype III strain elicited a less immediate response, resulting in more pronounced central nervous system (CNS) symptoms and behavioral effects. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to show serotype-specific immune responses to S. agalactiae in Nile tilapia. These findings are important for advancing disease management and control strategies in aquaculture. Identifying different immune reactions triggered by serotypes Ib and III may assist the development of more specific approaches for preventive measures, early detection, and effective treatment against streptococcosis.

    Keywords: Nile tilapia, Brain, Streptococcosis, Immunity, Aquaculture, Gene Expression, RNAseq

    Received: 15 Nov 2024; Accepted: 23 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Appel, Siqueira, Konstantinidis, Mello Martins, Joshi, Garcia Pretto-Giordano, Vilas-Boas and de Oliveira Fernandes. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Lucienne Garcia Pretto-Giordano, Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, State University of Londrina, Londrina, 86057-970, Paraná, Brazil
    Laurival Antônio Vilas-Boas, Department of General Biology, State University of Londrina, Londrina, 86057-970, Paraná, Brazil
    Jorge Manuel de Oliveira Fernandes, Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, Nord University, Bodø, Norway

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