Comparison of defence ability against the white spot syndrome virus between Fenneropenaeus chinensis and Marsupenaeus japonicus

The defence ability of Fenneropenaeus chinensis and Marsupenaeus japonicus against the intrusion of the white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) was compared after injecting WSSV intramuscularly by recording cumulative mortality, diagnosing the virus and examining variations in immunological parameters including the total haemocyte counts (THCs), phagocytic percentage (PP), plasma protein concentration (PPC), phenoloxidase (PO) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity. The results showed that the variations in the immunological parameters of F. chinensis and M. japonicus showed similar trends. The THCs of the two species decreased significantly postchallenge of WSSV. The virus was detected at 78 h in M. japonicus and at 42 h in F. chinensis after infection, which was in correlation with the accumulative mortality, and the variations in PO, PP, NOS and PPC in the two species. All shrimps of F. chinensis in the mortality experiment died within 66 h, much more quickly than M. japonicus, whose cumulative mortality reached 100% after 198 h. In conclusion, the immune system of M. japonicus has a stronger resistant ability to antagonize and endure the invasion of WSSV than that of F. chinensis.