Susceptibility of testicular cell cultures of crab, Scylla serrata (Forskal) to white spot syndrome virus.

Testicular cell culture of crab, Scylla serrata (Forskal) was used to study the effects of White spot syndrome virus (WSSV). We are showing the susceptibility of cell culture of crabs to WSSV. The proliferating cell culture of testes were maintained for more than 4 months in a medium prepared from L15 and crab saline supplemented with epidermal growth factor. The cell cultures inoculated with different concentrations of virus showed distinct cytopathic effects such as change in cell appearance, shrinkage and cell lysis. WSSV infection of cultured cells was confirmed by Nested PCR technique. The incorporation of viral DNA in cultured cells was shown by RAPD profile generated using 10-mer primers. The controls that were not exposed to WSSV did not show cytopathic effects. This work shows the usefulness of proliferating testicular cell culture for studying WSSV infection using molecular tools. Thus, this report gains significance as it opens new vistas for diagnostics and drugs for WSSV.