Mass spectrometry used to identify fish diseases

Mass spectrometry has been used to identify proteins which have a hand in the development and spread of fish herpesviruses, which can cause serious disease and death among species.

Research published in Veterinary Research 2011 revealed how experts conducted studies into the Anguillid herpesvirus (AngHV-1), which causes a hemorrhagic disease in European eel, Anguilla anguilla.

At the moment, fundamental molecular knowledge on fish herpesviruses is still limited, and so researchers attempted to describe the identification and localisation of the structural proteins of AngHV-1.

During the study, purified virions were fractionated into a capsid-tegument and an envelope fraction, and premature capsids were isolated from infected cells, while proteins were extracted by different methods and identified by mass spectrometry.

In total, 40 structural proteins were identified, seven of which could be assigned to the capsid, 11 to the envelope, and 22 to the tegument, enabling functional predictions.

The experts concluded that the identification and localisation of the structural proteins of AngHV-1 in the study adds to the fundamental knowledge of members of the Alloherpesviridae family, especially of the Cyprinivirus genus.