Histopathology of the gill of Vaname Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) infested by protozoan ectoparasite

The aim of this study were to determine the changes of vaname gill which infested by ectoparasites and the correlation between the degree of ectoparasite infestation. The results showed that ectoparasites were found in the gill of vaname shrimp were Zoothamnium sp. and Epistylis sp... The degree infestation of the infested gills showed moderate infestations for Zoothamnium sp.; moderate and mild infestations for Epistylis sp. Histopathology analysis found haemorrhagi and hyperplasia. The correlation between the degree of ectoparasite infestation and the changes of vaname gill histopathology infested by ectoparasite showed a positive correlation (r = 0.926), which means that the high degree of the infestation, the higher histopathological changes.