The Establishment of the Multi-Visual Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Method for the Rapid Detection of Vibrio harveyi, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, and Singapore grouper iridovirus

Abstract

Groupers are valuable economic fish in the southern sea area of China, but the threat of disease is becoming more and more serious. Vibrio harveyi, V. parahaemolyticus, and Singapore grouper iridovirus (SGIV) are three important pathogens that cause disease in groupers, and infection with either a single one or a mix of these pathogens poses a serious threat to the healthy development of grouper culture. To enhance the rapid diagnosis and screening in the early stages, it is necessary to develop rapid detection methods of these pathogens. To simultaneously and rapidly detect the three pathogens, in this study, we utilized the TolC of V. harveyi, DNAJ of V. parahaemolyticus, and RAD2 of SGIV as the target genes and established a triple visual loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) method. This LAMP method showed a detection time as fast as 30 min and a high sensitivity of 100 fg/μL. Moreover, this method exhibited strong specificity and no cross-reaction with seven types of Vibrio and Staphylococcus aureus, as well as five common viruses in aquatic animals. Then, the LAMP products were enzymically cut, and three characteristic strips were used to identify the pathogen species. The results of the clinical trials demonstrated that the method could accurately and specifically detect V. harveyi, V. parahaemolyticus, and SGIV in grouper tissues. In summary, this study successfully established a triple visual LAMP rapid detection method for V. harveyi, V. parahaemolyticus, and SGIV. The method offers several advantages including simple equipment, easy operation, rapid reaction, high specificity, high sensitivity, and visual results. It is suitable for the early and rapid diagnosis of groupers infected with V. harveyi, V. parahaemolyticus, and SGIV, thereby providing useful technical support for further application in the large-scale disease surveillance of aquaculture animals.