Etiological characteristics of Australian redclaw crayfish

In November 2019, an acute disease outbreak of Australian redclaw crayfish (Cherax quadricarinatus) occurred in a farm in Hubei, China, with a cumulative mortality rate of over 80%. One of the characteristic symptoms of the disease is blisters on the tail. This symptom is also common in diseased Procambarus clarkii every year in this country, but its pathogen has not been determined. This study analyzed the etiological characteristics of this disease. Bacterial isolation and identification combined with high-throughput sequencing analysis were conducted to obtain the microbiota characteristics in the hemolymph, hepatopancreas, and intestines.