Bacteria capable of producing different extracellular enzymes of potential relevance in digestive processes were isolated from the stomach, hepatopancreas and intestine of Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei. A total of 64 strains with proteolytic activity were isolated and grouped into 16 clusters based on morphological characteristics: 4 groups were isolated from the intestine; 5 from t...

Litopenaeus vannamei, which is the most common shrimp species cultivated in the northeast of Brazil, is very susceptible to microbial diseases, and this consequently affects productivity. There are reports of bacteria, viruses and protozoa in these shrimp, but not fungi. This study aims to isolate and identify fungi present in shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei, and in their nursery waters, at two bre...

cDNA encoding prophenoloxidase (proPO) of the white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei was obtained from haemocytes by a reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and rapid amplification of cDNA using oligonucleotide primers based on the proPO sequence of tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon, freshwater crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus, green tiger shrimp Penaeus semisulcatus (accession no.: A...

The macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is an important proinflammatory cytokine that mediates both innate and adaptive immune responses. In this study, we identified a homolog of MIF in the Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei. The MIF cDNA contained a 363-bp open reading frame encoding a 120-amino acid protein with a calculated molecular mass of 13.442 kDa and a theoretical isoe...

A previous study found the key transcription factor of Litopenaeus vannamei PERK-eIF2α pathway cyclic AMP-dependent transcription factor 4 (LvATF4) was involved in the transcriptional regulation of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) gene wsv023. Knocked-down expression of LvATF4 reduced the viral copy number and the cumulative mortality of WSSV-infected shrimp. These results suggested that wsv023...

The Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei is a euryhaline penaeid species that shows ontogenetic adaptations to salinity, with its larvae inhabiting oceanic environments and postlarvae and juveniles inhabiting estuaries and lagoons. Ontogenetic adaptations to salinity manifest in L. vannamei through strong hyper-osmoregulatory and hypo-osmoregulatory patterns and an ability to tolerate extr...