Effect of Sublethal Hypoxia on the Immune Response and Susceptibility of Channel Catfish, Ictalurus punctatus , to Enteric Septicemia

The effect of sublethal hypoxia exposure on stress and immune responses and susceptibility to Edwardsiella ictaluri infection in juvenile channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus , was investigated. Fish were monitored for temporal changes in glucose and cortisol concentrations before, during, and after 2 h exposure to sublethal hypoxia (<2 mg/L dissolved oxygen [DO]) and when maintained under normoxic conditions (6.0 ± 0.3 mg/L DO). Both blood glucose and plasma cortisol increased significantly in response to hypoxic conditions. Fish exposed to hypoxic or normoxic conditions were challenged with a high dose (1.3 × 10 7  colony‐forming units [CFU]/mL) or a low dose (1.3 × 10 5  CFU/mL) of E. ictaluri or sterile culture broth by 30‐min immersion bath. Approximately 1% of fish in both the normoxic and the hypoxic groups died when challenged with the low dose of E. ictaluri . However, when challenged with the high dose of E. ictaluri , catfish exposed to hypoxic conditions had significantly higher cumulative mortality (36 ± 12.1%) than those maintained under normoxic conditions (12 ± 1.1%). Total hemolytic complement and bactericidal activities and antibody response were lower in hypoxia‐exposed channel catfish, indicating that increased susceptibility of channel catfish to E. ictaluri may be the result of the immunosuppressive effects of the stress response to hypoxia.