Bluegill sunfish is an important economic fish, which originated in
North America. It was introduced to China in 1987 and is now widely
cultivated in Guangdong Province. In recent years, a fatal bacterial
disease often occurs in cultured bluegill sunfish. The clinical
manifestations of the diseased bluegill sunfish were ulceration and
hyperemia. A bacterial pathogen was isolated from the viscera of
diseased fish. It was identified as Vibrio cholerae by morphological,
biochemical and 16S rDNA phylogenetic analysis. The regression infection
experiment confirmed that the isolated strains could cause the disease
of healthy bluegill sunfish. In this study, Vibrio cholerae was isolated
and identified from diseased bluegill sunfish for the first time, and it
provides a basis for the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of the
disease. At the same time, this study proposed three ways for the
transmission of Vibrio cholerae from aquatic animals to human beings,
warning that we need to pay attention to the serious harm that the
zoonotic bacteria in aquatic animals may cause to human beings, hoping
to attract the attention of the whole society, so as to formulate
effective countermeasures.