Development of a polyclonal antibody Edwardsiella ictaluri serum for diagnosis of Enteric Septicemia of Catfish (ESC) in Patin Catfish (Pangasianodon hypopthalmus)

Abstract

Enteric Septicemia of Catfish (ESC), caused by Edwarsiella ictaluri, has been considered a major bacterial disease in catfish, including Patin (Pangasionodon hypophthalmus), causing economic losses. Monitoring activities and identification of bacterial disease are performed using a series of biochemical tests, including Gram stain, Ryu, motility, and glucose; the test is at a certain temperature, requires specific conditions and facilities, and takes a long time. We developed a method based on antigen-antibody reactions to diagnose the disease, which provides more specific/accurate results in a shorter time to be used as a more flexible and rapid "diagnosis tool" as an anticipatory step in disease control. The development of antibody-serum is based on the specific character (specificity) of bacteria for antigen and performed according to standard methods using rabbits as test animals. The process starts with a mass culture of E. ictaluri, antigen in-activation, priming and booster injection, bleeding, and deriving polyclonal antibody serum. This diagnostic tool is expected to identify the target bacteria within 24 h, indicated by agglutination in the antigen-antibody reaction called the serum antibodies method. In this research, we produced serum, and ready to use, a 0.05-0.1 mL of serum-containing antibody is reacted with the bacterial isolate suspension.