Detection of Salmonid Herpesvirus (Oncorhynchus masou virus) in Fish by Southern-Blot Technique

Abstract

To detect oncorhynchus masou virus (OMV) in salmonid fish, we prepared recombinant plasmids from two distinct BamHI digests of OMV DNA as a probe. Viral DNAs could be detected two weeks earlier before the virus was isolated from asymptomatic or dead fish. Using the probe, viral DNAs were detected from fish reared in fish hatcheries or fish captured in a river in Hokkaido. The sensitivity limit of detection was estimated to be 10 copies of viral DNA per cell.