Detection of the white spot syndrome virus in zooplankton samples collected off the coast of Sonora, Mexico

The aim of this study was to determine the presence of the white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) in zooplankton organisms collected from an important shrimp-culture area of the Gulf of California. Environmental water parameters (temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and pH) were monitored, and zooplankton was collected. Samples were sectioned according to taxonomic groups (from Phylum to Family) for the detection of WSSV via PCR. A total of 52 zooplankton taxa were identified, of which crustaceans were the most abundant (82%). From the 228 WSSV diagnoses performed, 35% were positive. Moreover, from 32 taxa recorded at least one positive result was observed during the study, and only 13 were negative in all tests. The highest prevalence was observed in three taxa of copepods, brachyurous and bivalves. However, considering prevalence and frequency of occurrence, it was determined that up to 12 taxa could be considered as high-risk vectors. Finally, a significant correlation was found between the number of diagnoses per station with biovolume (rs = 0.817) and taxa richness (rs = 0.995). The results suggest that zooplankton diversity and abundance are associated with virus dispersion; moreover, these results demonstrated that the dispersion capacity of the virus through different taxa has been probably underestimated in recent years.