First Episode of Shell Disease Syndrome in Carcinus aestuarii (Crustacea:

In this study is reported the first episode of a Shell Disease Syndrome (SDS) in wild specimens of Carcinus aestuarii from the polluted Volturno River estuary. Collected crabs showed erosive and ulcerative "black spot" lesions on the exoskeleton; histologically the lesions ranged from a mild to extensive and severe damages and intense haemocyte infiltration. Bacterial isolation confirmed the presence of some marine bacterial species with chitinolytic activity. The authors suggest that the detection of sds in wild crabs living in polluted waters could be used to monitor the health status of this environment