An immune-enriched oligo-microarray analysis of gene expression in Manila clam (Venerupis philippinarum) haemocytes after a Perkinsus olseni challenge

Abstract

The Manila clam (Venerupis philippinarum) is one of the most extensively cultured bivalves in the world, especially in Asia and Europe. Parasites of the genus Perkinsus cause high mortality and economic losses in bivalves commonly produced in global aquaculture. Although the immune responses of oysters and clams naturally infected with P. marinus or P. olseni have been extensively studied, there is not much information on host response at the early stages of infection. Oligo-microarrays are a sensitive and reproducible technology for studying complex biological functions. This technology has been used to analyse gene expression in C. virginica infected with P. marinus and in V. decussatus naturally infected with P. olseni. In this study, we used an immune-enriched DNA microarray to analyse how P. olseni influences the gene expression profiles of haemocytes from Manila clams intramuscularly injected with this pathogen. Our results provide novel observations of the innate immune response at different infection stages