Evaluation of Clove Extract for Drug Therapy of Ciliate Infection in Coral (<i>Goniopora columna</i>)
Tah-Wei Chu,
Chiu-Min Cheng,
Yu-Rong Cheng,
Cheng-Di Dong,
Chih-Hung Chuang,
Chih-Hung Pan,
Wei-Ting Sun,
De-Sing Ding
Affiliations
Tah-Wei Chu
Department and Graduate Institute of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
Chiu-Min Cheng
Department and Graduate Institute of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
Yu-Rong Cheng
Department of Fisheries Production and Management, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, No. 142, Haijhuan Rd., Nanzih District, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
Cheng-Di Dong
Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
Chih-Hung Chuang
Department of Medical Laboratory Science and Biotechnology, College of Health Sciences, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 807, Taiwan
Chih-Hung Pan
Department and Graduate Institute of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
Wei-Ting Sun
Department and Graduate Institute of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
De-Sing Ding
Department and Graduate Institute of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
In recent years, ciliate infections have caused serious casualties to corals in the ocean. Infected corals die within a short period of time, which not only poses a threat to wild coral reefs, but also has a major impact on large scale aquaculture of coral. Clove is a kind of Chinese medicine with antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, insecticidal, and other functions. Clove is a natural product. If it can be used in the treatment of coral ciliates, it will reduce this threat to the environment. The clove extract was diluted with sterile seawater to 500 ppm, 1500 ppm, 2500 ppm, 5000 ppm, 7500 ppm, and 10,000 ppm to carry out virulence test on ciliates. The results show that the LC50 value is 1500 ppm, which can cause the death of ciliates in 10 min without causing significant changes in G. columna SOD, CAT, chlorophyll a, and zooxanthellae. In addition, observation of tissue slices revealed that no ciliates and vacuum were found in the G. columna tissue after 10 min of medicated bathing. In summary, 1500 ppm of clove extract can be used for the treatment of coral ciliates.
