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Symptoms:
Whirling disease infects only salmonid fishes. Symptoms of severe whirling disease infections include whirling behavior, blackened tails, and head and skeletal deformities. Whirling disease gets its common name from the circular, uncontrolled swimming of some infected fish. Subclinical infections are common, and fish can be carriers of infective spores without any visible outward signs of disease. Confirmation by histology and/or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is recommended for diagnosis of Myxobolus cerebralis infections.
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Cause:
Whirling disease is caused by the microscopic spores of Myxobolus cerebralis, a multicellular parasite in the phylum Myxozoa. The disease usually progresses slowly, taking several months to kill the fish. Mortality is generally limited to severe infections of susceptible species during the early stages of their skeletal development.
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Treatment:
Unfortunately, there is no curative treatment or vaccine. Elimination of Tubifex tubifex worms, the parasite's alternate host, and their habitat can interrupt the parasite's life cycle and prevent fish infections. Treatments of water and structures with chemicals, ultraviolet radiation and electric fields have been tested, but have not proved extremely successful. Prevention of M. cerebralis contamination is key, and can be accomplished through the use of certified disease-free fish sources and clean, secure water supply.
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Diseases
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