HISTOPATHOLOGY OF APHANOMYCES INFECTION IN DWARF GOURAMI (COLISA-LALIA)

Histopathological study was made on an epizootic of systemic mycosis due to Aphanomyces sp. in an ornamental fish species, dwarf gourami (Colisa lalia), imported from Singapore in 1991 and 1992. In almost all cases, the external clinical signs in infected fish included erosions and/or ulcers on the body surface, and swelling of the abdomen. Histopathological examination of the fish revealed that the disease was characterized by systemic granulomatous lesions associated with Aphanomyces sp. In this paper, we describe detailed histopathological features of the mycotic lesions and compared the features with those of other mycoses, such as mycotic granulomatosis, ulcerative mycosis, red spot disease and epizootic ulcerative syndorome. The present case shared similar histopathological features including mycotic granulomatous lesions, with those of earlier reported mycoses.