Faculty of Science
THE ROLE OF BACTERIAL INFECTION IN EARLY BENTHIC PHASE MORTALITY OF
MARINE INVERTEBRATES
2015 | SAMANTHA DAWN SANDEE

B.Sc. Honours thesis

THE ROLE OF BACTERIAL INFECTION IN EARLY BENTHIC
PHASE MORTALITY OF MARINE INVERTEBRATES

by

SAMANTHA DAWN SANDEE

A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONS.)
in the
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(Biology)

We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standards:

Louis Gosselin (Ph.D.), Thesis Supervisor, Dept. Biological Sciences
Jonathan Van Hamme (Ph.D.), Co-supervisor, Dept. Biological Sciences
Cynthia Ross Friedman (Ph.D.), Dept. Biological Sciences

Dated this 1st day of May 2015, in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada

ABSTRACT
Marine invertebrates experience a substantial amount of mortality during the early benthic
phase which can influence a population’s future abundance and distribution as well as exert
selective pressure, driving its evolution. Some causative agents of intertidal juvenile marine
invertebrate mortality have already been elucidated, such as predation and desiccation stress,
but the influence of bacterial infection on early benthic phase mortality is not known. The
purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of infectious agents in generating the high
mortality rates observed amongst wild populations of juvenile invertebrates living in the
intertidal zone.
In this study, five antibiotics were administered to juvenile Mytilus trossulus (mussels) and
Nucella ostrina (snails): oxytetracycline (OTC), chloramphenicol (CM), kanamycin sulfate
(KS), and trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole (TxS). The juveniles were placed in small
cages and were constantly submerged off of the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre docks. M.
trossulus and N. ostrina were soaked in a mixture of the antibiotics for a half hour three times
per day for five days. After five days the mortality in the treatment and control groups was
compared.
Mortality was low in the control treatment for both species, ranging from 0 - 3.7% (M.
trossulus) and 0.5 - 4.0% (N. ostrina), indicating that infectious stress is not a major cause of
mortality of juvenile marine invertebrates. Further, no significant difference in mortality was
observed between the antibiotic treatment and control treatment for either M. trossulus or N.
ostrina (Friedman block test P>0.99 S<0.01 (M. trossulus); Friedman block test P=0.564
S=0.33 (N. ostrina)), indicating that bacterial infection is not causing mortality of juvenile
marine invertebrates.
Thesis Supervisor: Professor, Louis Gosselin, PhD

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank my honours supervisor Dr. Louis Gosselin for his many hours of
support and countless reviews of my thesis, as well as Dr. Jonathan Van Hamme and Dr.
Cynthia Ross Friedman. I would also like to thank Thompson Rivers University for awarding
me with a UREAP scholarship which helped to fund this research. Finally, I would like to
thank my family and friends for supporting me throughout this process.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract .................................................................................................................................... ii
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................ iii
Table of contents .................................................................................................................... iv
List of figures .......................................................................................................................... vi
Introduction ..............................................................................................................................1
Materials and methods ............................................................................................................3
Study site and organisms ........................................................................................................3
Size range of M. trossulus used in the experiments ................................................................4
Extent of M. trossulus exposure to the treatment soaks .........................................................5
Selection of antibiotics ...........................................................................................................5
Preparation of the antibiotic solutions...................................................................................6
Experiments ............................................................................................................................7
Dosage trials: individual antibiotic solutions .....................................................................7
Dosage trials: combined antibiotic solutions ......................................................................8
Effects of antibiotics on mortality in the field ....................................................................9
Data analysis ........................................................................................................................10
Results .....................................................................................................................................10
Size range of M. trossulus used in the experiments ..............................................................10
Extent of M. trossulus exposure to the treatment soaks .......................................................11
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Dosage trials: individual antibiotic solutions ......................................................................12
Dosage trials: combined antibiotic solutions.......................................................................14
Effects of antibiotics on mortality in the field ......................................................................16
Discussion................................................................................................................................19
Size range of M. trossulus used in the experiments ..............................................................19
Extent of M. trossulus exposure to the treatment soaks .......................................................20
Dosage trials ........................................................................................................................20
Effects of antibiotics on mortality in the field ......................................................................21
Implications and future directions .......................................................................................22
Literature cited.......................................................................................................................25
Appendix .................................................................................................................................30

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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Size frequency distribution of Mytilus trossulus collected in the field (total size
frequency distribution of mussels found settled in filamentous algae) displayed by date of
collection, and size frequency distribution of M. trossulus collected for use in field
experiments 2-4 ........................................................................................................................11
Figure 2: Proportion of M. trossulus juveniles that were either open (and thus exposed to the
antibiotics) or closed during the course of a half hour soak. Twenty-four M. trossulus were
individually tracked over the course of this evaluation. At each timepoint, each individual
was observed for ten seconds. ..................................................................................................12
Figure 3: Percent mortality of newly settled M. trossulus in A) oxytetracycline, B)
chloramphenicol, C) kanamycin sulfate, and D) trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole. Antibiotic
solutions were administered for a half hour, three times per day, for five days. Each value is
based on four replicates of 10 individuals ...............................................................................14
Figure 4: Mortality of M. trossulus in the combined antibiotic dosage trial. Each value
represents the average of four replicates of 10 individuals. The full concentration (100%)
antibiotic cocktail used in this dosage trial consisted of oxytetracycline at 400 mg/L,
kanamycin sulfate at 20 mg/L, a 1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 22.5:225
mg/L, and chloramphenicol at 80 mg/L. These antibiotics were mixed (100% concentration)
and then diluted to 75%, 50%, 25%, and 0% of full strength for the other treatment groups .15
Figure 5: Mortality of Nucella ostrina in the combined antibiotic dosage trial. Each value
represents the average of seven replicates of 10 individuals. The full concentration (100%)
antibiotic cocktail used in this dosage trial consisted of oxytetracycline at 400 mg/L,
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kanamycin sulfate at 20 mg/L, a 1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 22.5:225
mg/L, and chloramphenicol at 80 mg/L. These antibiotics were mixed (100% concentration)
and then diluted to 75%, 50%, 25%, and 0% of full strength for the other treatment
groups .......................................................................................................................................16
Figure 6: Mortality of M. trossulus in field experiments 1-4. The 75% antibiotic cocktail
used in these field experiments consisted of oxytetracycline at 300 mg/L, kanamycin sulfate
at 15 mg/L, a 1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 16.88:168.75 mg/L, and
chloramphenicol at 60 mg/L. Values of experiments 1-4 in the control groups are based on 8,
4, 5, and 3 replicates of 10 individuals, while values in the treatment groups are based on 8,
3, 6, and 3 replicates of 10 individuals, respectively ...............................................................18
Figure 7: Mortality of N. ostrina in field experiments 1-4. The full strength (100%)
antibiotic cocktail used in these field experiments consisted of oxytetracycline at 400 mg/L,
kanamycin sulfate at 20 mg/L, a 1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 22.5:225
mg/L, and chloramphenicol at 80 mg/L. Values of experiments 1-4 in the control groups are
based on 9, 19, 5, and 5 replicates of 10 individuals, while values in the treatment groups are
based on 9, 20, 5, and 5 replicates of 10 individuals, respectively ..........................................19
Appendix Figure 1: Total proportion of M. trossulus used in experimentation displayed by
size range and date of measurement. A total of 235 individuals were photographed and
digitally measured, 70 from 8/13/2014, 109 from 8/15/2014, and 56 from 8/17/2014 ...........30
Appendix Figure 2: Mortality of M. trossulus in a preliminary oxytetracycline dosage
experiment conducted from 21/06/2014-26/06/2014, mortality being counted on 24/06/2014
(day 3) and 26/06/2014 (day 5). Between counts, some individuals were lost, resulting in
vii

some day 5 mortality being lower than day 3 mortality. Each value represents the average of
five replicates of 10 individuals ...............................................................................................31
Appendix Figure 3: Mortality of M. trossulus in a preliminary kanamycin sulfate dosage
experiment conducted from 24/06/2014-29/06/2014, mortality being counted on 27/06/2014
(day 3) and 29/06/2014 (day 5). Between counts, some individuals were lost, resulting in
some day 5 mortality being lower than day 3 mortality. Each value represents the average of
four replicates of 10 individuals. .............................................................................................32

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INTRODUCTION

During the early benthic phase at the beginning of juvenile life, many marine invertebrate
species experience a substantial bottleneck effect, often with more than 80% of individuals
dying within the first 4 months. In fact, mortality is often highest within the first few hours or
days of benthic life (Gosselin and Qian 1997). A number of factors are known to play a role
in causing this high mortality rate, including predation, temperature and desiccation
(Gosselin & Chia, 1995a, 1995b; Griffiths & Gosselin, 2008; Jenewein & Gosselin, 2013);
wave action (Naylor & McShane, 2001); and ultraviolet (UV) radiation (Gosselin & Jones,
2010). Other factors may be involved, however, and infections such as those caused by
bacteria or by viruses, fungi, and protozoa are likely candidates that have yet to be examined.

Many infectious agents are known to cause mortality of adult marine invertebrates in the
wild, although mortality rates are often recorded only during the occurrence of an epidemic.
The sea star wasting disease currently sweeping along the coast of North America is linked to
a densovirus infection (Hewson et al. 2014). With regard to bacteria, there are reports of
bacterial infections sweeping through wild invertebrate populations and causing substantial
mortality amongst adult animals (reviewed in Fey et al., 2015), such as the 1999 and 2003
mass mortality occurrences in Mediterranean Sea caused by a Vibrio spp. bacterium which
impacted invertebrate phyla as diverse as Ascidiae, Bryozoa, Cnidaria, Mollusca, and
Porifera (Cerrano et al., 2000; Perez et al., 2000; Bonhomme et al., 2003). However, the
information on mortality during reported epidemics refers only to the adult animals, and there
is no information on the impact of epidemic or basal levels of bacterial infections on juvenile
marine invertebrate mortality rates in a natural setting.

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The fact that no studies have yet attributed juvenile mortality events in the wild to bacterial
infection does not mean they are not occurring - bacterial infections do have the ability to
affect juveniles and are known to cause significant health problems to invertebrates reared in
the aquaculture industry, causing millions of dollars in damage every year (Wilkenfeld, 1992;
Paillard et al., 2004). In particular, four bacterial infections are known to cause mortality
specifically of juvenile bivalves: juvenile oyster disease (Proteobacteria), hinge ligament
erosion disease (Cytophaga), chronic abcess syndrome (Vibrio), and an event referred to as
summer oyster mortality (bacterial species not determined) (reviewed in (Paillard et al.,
2004). Thus, juveniles are susceptible not only to adult infections but also to some infections
unique to this life stage. When these diseases affect aquaculture stock, up to 100% of the
juveniles may die, although this number is highly variable depending on the infectious agent
(Goulletquer et al., 1998; Paillard et al., 2004). These high infection and mortality rates likely
result from the concentrated monoculture nature of the aquaculture systems (Spaargaren,
1998). Juveniles of species reared in aquaculture, other than bivalves, are also affected by
bacterial infection, including sea cucumbers, crabs, and shrimp.

To curb the appearance and spread of bacterial infection in invertebrate aquaculture,
antibiotics are commonly used (Holmstrom et al., 2003; Thuy et al., 2011; de la Cruz et al.,
2014; Wang et al., 2014). They apparently cause no adverse effects to the health of the
animals and increase crop yields (Bray et al., 2006). In addition, antibiotics are commonly
used in invertebrate research to elucidate the cause of certain diseases, improve animal
health, or evaluate disease responses (Sutton & Garrick, 1993; Boettcher et al., 1999;
Banerjee et al., 2007; Azam & Narayan, 2013). As such, antibiotics are an appropriate choice

2

to confer invertebrates protection against bacterial infection, and a selection of antibiotics has
been chosen for use in this study based on those currently in use.

Mytilus trossulus, a marine bivalve, and Nucella ostrina, a marine snail, were chosen as
model organisms for the present study due to the availability of early juveniles, their
importance in intertidal communities, and also because they have different dispersal
mechanisms before and during the juvenile phase. M. trossulus and N. ostrina can both be
found abundantly in the intertidal zone from California to Alaska (Palmer et al. 1990;
Rawson and Hilbish 1995). Both of these species also affect the community structure in their
habitat (Menge et al. 1994). M. trossulus larvae disperse through the water column and settle
on filamentous algae where they metamorphose into juveniles (Strathmann 1987). N. ostrina
juveniles, on the other hand, emerge from egg capsules and crawl away as small juveniles
(Gosselin and Chia 1995a). Both species reside in the intertidal zone where they are exposed
to a variety of stressors.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of infectious agents, and more specifically
bacterial infections, in generating the high mortality rates observed in wild populations of
juvenile invertebrates living in the intertidal zone. The specific objectives of this project were
to determine 1) how much mortality of early benthic phase M. trossulus and N. ostrina
occurs when these animals are protected from intertidal stressors such as predation,
desiccation, UV radiation, and wave action, but remain exposed to bacteria, fungi, viruses,
and parasites, and 2) if the administration of broad-spectrum commercial antibiotics
[oxytetracycline (OTC), trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole (TxS), chloramphenicol (CM),

3

and kanamycin sulfate (KM)] produces a significant decrease in early benthic phase mortality
rates of M. trossulus and N. ostrina held in a natural setting.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study site and organisms
This study was conducted at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Center (BMSC) in Barkley
Sound on the west coast of Vancouver Island, from 26 May to 17 August, 2014. Before
experimentation began, early benthic phase specimens of the model organisms being used
(Mytilus trossulus and Nucella ostrina) were collected. M. trossulus juveniles were obtained
by collecting filamentous algae (Cladophora columbiana) from the upper intertidal zone at
Prasiola Point (N 48° 81’ 76.0”; W 125° 16’ 84.1”) throughout the summer. C. columbiana
was gathered and placed into Ziploc™ bags, which were taken back to the laboratory for
processing. The algae were gently shaken and torn apart in 60% seawater diluted with
freshwater (3 parts seawater to 2 parts freshwater). This diluted seawater caused M. trossulus
to close, which helped to separate them from the algae. After the algae had been torn, the
particulates that had fallen from the algae (and which were suspended in seawater) were
passed through a series of three sieves: 3 mm, 610 µm, and 102 µm. Particles remaining on
the 102 µm filter, including small juvenile M. trossulus, were rinsed off into a bowl with full
strength seawater, and this bowl was placed under the dissection microscope. The smallest
M. trossulus were removed from the filtrate using a combination of pipette and insect
tweezers and placed in small cages, 10 mussels to a cage. The cages were made from
microcentrifuge tubes and 102 µm mesh.

4

Ripe (unplugged) egg capsules of N. ostrina, containing fully developed juveniles that had
not yet emerged, were also collected in the field at Prasiola Point and taken back to the
laboratory from mid-July to August. The egg capsules were carefully removed from their
attachment site by their base with tweezers. Egg capsules were placed in small cages lined
with 660 µm mesh and submerged in seawater tables; newly hatched juvenile snails were
removed from the cages 12-24 hours later, after they had crawled out of the egg capsule.
Size range of M. trossulus used in the experiments
Unlike early benthic phase N. ostrina which had just emerged from their egg capsules, M.
trossulus individuals extracted from algae could not directly be aged. To ensure M. trossulus
collected for experimentation were of the smallest size classes available in the field and had
just settled, 235 mussels from field experiments 2, 3, and 4 were photographed and digitally
measured after the completion of the 5 day field experiments. Their sizes were then
compared to the full size frequency distribution of 208 M. trossulus individuals present in C.
columbiana collected at our field site, Prasiola Point. The full size frequency distribution was
obtained by photographing and digitally measuring all M. trossulus present in two samples of
C. columbiana collected on different dates. The sizes of the mussels used in experimentation
were then compared to the total size range present in the field to verify that only recently
settled individuals were being used (Appendix Figure 1). Digital measurements were taken
using ImageJ version 1.48.
Extent of M. trossulus exposure to the antibiotic solutions
Juvenile M. trossulus were also assessed to ensure they were being exposed to the antibiotic
solution in the experiments described below. N. ostrina have an operculum that does not fully

5

cover the opening of their shell and the soft tissues of these juveniles are therefore
continually exposed to the antibiotic solution when submerged in such a solution. However,
M. trossulus can hermetically close their valves and thus needed to be evaluated to ensure
they were opening their valves and being exposed to the treatment during the soaks. Visual
assessment of the valve position of M. trossulus was carried out by placing 24 individuals in
separate wells of a 24-well tray, each well containing 10 mL of the antibiotic cocktail. Every
individual was observed separately under a dissecting microscope once every five minutes
throughout the soak at which time their status, open or closed, was recorded.
Selection of antibiotics
Oxytetracycline hydrochloride (OTC), kanamycin sulfate (KS), a 1:10 mixture of
trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole (TxS), and chloramphenicol (CM) were the antibiotics
selected for this study. Antibiotics were selected to provide a range of bacteriostatic and
bactericidal protection, to work via different mechanisms of action, and to target different
kinds of bacteria in order to create an effective broad spectrum bacterial treatment.
OTC was selected for use because it is effective against many bacteria known to infect
juvenile marine invertebrates such as Vibrio spp., Rickettsia spp., and Chlamydia spp.
(Paillard et al., 2004; Banerjee et al., 2007) and because it has been used safely on juvenile
mud crabs and shrimp (Banerjee et al., 2007; Azam & Narayan, 2013). TxS combined in a
1:10 mixture were selected for use because they have a different mechanism of action than
OTC and inhibit growth of different bacteria, and because sulfonamides such as
sulfamethoxazole have been widely and successfully used in aquaculture (Boettcher et al.,
1999; Liu et al., 2012; de la Cruz et al., 2014). CM was selected for use because it has a
different mechanism of action from that of either OTC or TxS, and CM has been
6

administered to clams without causing mortality (Sutton & Garrick, 1993; Joyner et al.,
2003). Finally, KS was selected because it has a different mechanism of action than the
aforementioned antibiotics, and has been safely used in cephalopods (Meurant, 2012).
Antibiotics were first tested separately at different concentrations to ensure they did not
cause mortality of the juveniles, and the highest dosage of each antibiotic found to be
nonlethal was then combined and tested in an ‘antibiotic cocktail’. This was done to ensure
there were no lethal additive effects of combining the antibiotics. This cocktail was then used
in the field experiments.
Preparation of the antibiotic solutions
Antibiotic solutions were prepared by dissolving the aforementioned antibiotics in 0.2 µm
filtered and autoclaved seawater. Concentrated stock solutions of OTC and KS were prepared
and then subsequently diluted to create each dosage testing solution. Dosage testing solutions
of the TxS and CM antibiotics were prepared each time from the original powdered
compounds because they were only slightly water soluble. To dissolve the antibiotics, the
solutions were mechanically mixed for one to two hours at room temperature and were then
refrigerated until use. The final experimental solutions used in the field trials, which
consisted of a cocktail of the antibiotics, were pH corrected with NaOH to a range of 8.2 to
8.4, matching the pH of local ocean surface water.
Experiments
Two sets of experiments were carried out: 1) dosage testing, to determine the highest
concentration of antibiotics that would cause no detectable effect on the survival of juvenile
M. trossulus and N. ostrina; and 2) field experiments, to determine if repeated short term
7

exposure to antibiotics leads to a reduction in juvenile mortality in a natural habitat. Dosage
testing was performed in small cages in laboratory seawater tables, while field experiments
were performed in cages attached to ropes hanging off of the BMSC docks.
Dosage trials: individual antibiotic solutions
Dosage testing was carried out from 19 June to 23 July 2014. Dosage trials of individual
antibiotics were carried out on M. trossulus; those results were then used as a basis for
determining the concentrations to be used in the cocktail for field experimentation with M.
trossulus and N. ostrina.
Four sets of antibiotics, (OTC, KS, a 1:10 mixture of TxS, and CM) were separately tested in
dosage trials. Each dosage trial included five treatment groups: a control treatment (no
antibiotic), a high dose treatment, and three additional treatments in equal increments
between the control and the high dose group. For each antibiotic, the highest dosage
treatment was determined based on the Merck Veterinary Manual, previously published
literature, or home marine aquarium dosage guidelines.
Juvenile M. trossulus and N. ostrina were kept in groups of 10 in small cages made of
microcentrifuge tubes with 102 µm mesh screening. This set-up allowed the cages to be
easily transferred from the seawater tables they were normally maintained in to the
containers that held the antibiotic solution. At the end of the five day trial, mortality was
counted in each cage.
In a preliminary trial with OTC and KS, M. trossulus juveniles were soaked for one hour per
day for three days. OTC was tested at 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 mg/L; and KS was tested at 0,
10, 20, 30, and 40 mg/L. No significant mortality was detected during this first trial (see
8

appendix Figures 2 and 3), and therefore concentrations were substantially increased and the
method was modified to a half hour soak three times per day for five days. In the subsequent
definitive dosage trials, OTC was tested at 0, 100, 200, 300, and 400 mg/L; KS was tested at
0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 mg/L; TxS was tested at 0, 7.5:75, 15:150, 22.5:225, and 30:300 mg/L;
and CM was tested at 0, 20, 40, 60, and 80 mg/L on M. trossulus juveniles. These dosage
trials ran from 20 June to 16 July 2014.
Dosage trials: combined antibiotic solutions
In the next dosage trials, the highest dose of each antibiotic that had been found to cause no
mortality in the individual trials was combined into one treatment (the antibiotic cocktail).
This was then tested to ensure there were no lethal additive effects of exposing the
invertebrates to these combined antibiotics. The dosage trial for this antibiotic cocktail
involved a control treatment (no antibiotic) and 4 cocktail concentrations: full strength
(100%), as well as 75%, 50%, and 25% of full strength. The full strength cocktail included
the following: OTC at 400 mg/L, KS at 20 mg/L, TxS at 22.5:225 mg/L, and CM at 80 mg/L.
These represent the maximum dosages which caused no mortality during individual dosage
testing with M. trossulus. Juvenile M. trossulus and N. ostrina were then exposed to these 4
treatment solutions to determine the most concentrated cocktail that caused no mortality for
each species, and thus to determine which treatment would be used in the field experiments.
This testing was carried out from 17 to 23 July, 2014.
Effects of antibiotics on mortality in the field
Field testing was carried out from 25 July to 17 August 2014. Weighted ropes were hung off
the BMSC docks and the cages containing juveniles were attached to these ropes at depths of

9

0.75-1.25 m. This setup maintained the animals constantly in the surface seawater, isolating
the juveniles from heat, desiccation, predators, UV radiation, and variations in pH or salinity
that are typical of intertidal habitats. Three times per day, for five days, one set of replicate
cages containing juveniles was soaked for a half hour in 500 mL of filtered, autoclaved
seawater (control treatment) and a second set of cages was placed in 500 mL of antibiotic
cocktail (antibiotic treatment). M. trossulus were exposed to a 75% antibiotic cocktail
solution, and N. ostrina were exposed to a 100% antibiotic cocktail solution as determined by
the dosage testing. Four field trials, each with a different set of animals, were carried out. In
the first field trial, the pH of the antibiotic solutions was not corrected, but in the three
subsequent trials the pH of the antibiotic solution was corrected to that of surface water in the
inlet by adding NaOH until the pH fell between 8.2-8.4, similar to the pH of ocean surface
water. This pH correction served to counteract the acidifying effects of the antibiotic cocktail
and eliminate any stress this may have put on the animals during the study. When
uncorrected, the pH of the antibiotic solution was 6.0 in the 100% concentration treatment
and 6.5in the 75% concentration treatment.
Data analysis
Data were not normally distributed and did not have homogenous variances, therefore
nonparametric tests were used to analyze the data. The effect of the individual antibiotics and
combined antibiotics on juvenile mortality was evaluated using Kruskal-Wallis tests;
differences were considered to be significant if p<0.05. For the field experiment, mortality in
the antibiotic and control treatments were compared using Friedman’s nonparametric
randomized block test; results were considered to be significant if p<0.05. All data analyses
were carried out using Minitab software.
10

RESULTS
Size range of M. trossulus used in the experiments
Almost all (98%) M. trossulus used in this study were <0.75mm in shell length and belonged
to the smallest size classes occurring in the field (Figure 1). Detailed size frequencies of M.
trossulus juveniles used in field experiments, per imaging date, are reported Appendix Figure
1. These results confirm that only the smallest size classes of M. trossulus were used in this
study. No M. trossulus smaller than 250 μm were ever collected from the field. Also note that
measures of experimental M. trossulus were taken at the end of the five day field trials; these
mussels would have been smaller at the start of the trials.

11

70
M. trossulus used in experimentation
M. trossulus from field collected 8/6/2014
M. trossulus from field collected 8/14/2014

M. trossulus
in size range
Frequency

60
50
40
30
20
10

0+
00

0

5.

5.
1-

00
4.

4.
1-

00
3.

3.

00

00

0

0
00

0
100

2.
2.

1-

00

50

0

.7
75
1.

25
1.

01

00
1.

50

75
0.

1.

50
0.

-1

1.

50

0
1.

1-

25
0.

1-

1.
1-

25

0

0.
1-

00

0

0.
1-

75

0

0.
0-

50

25

0

0

Size range (mm)
Figure 1: Size frequency distribution of M. trossulus collected in the field (found in
filamentous algae) displayed by date of collection, and size frequency distribution of those
used in field trials 2, 3 and 4 as measured at the end of the five day trials.

Extent of M. trossulus exposure to the antibiotic solutions
Juvenile M. trossulus were also examined to determine if they were opening their valves
when exposed to the antibiotic solutions. Of the 24 mussels examined, 17 were observed to
open at some point in the 30 minute trial (71%) while 7 were never observed open (29%).
The number open at any one time varied throughout the 30 minute period (Figure 2).

12

Number open
Number closed

25

Number of mussels

20

15

10

5

0
5

10

15

20

25

30

Timepoint (minute)
Figure 2: Proportion of M. trossulus juveniles that were either open (and thus exposed to the
antibiotics) or closed during the course of a half hour soak. Twenty-four M. trossulus were
individually tracked over the course of this evaluation. At each timepoint, each individual
was observed for ten seconds.

Dosage trials: individual antibiotic solutions
At the beginning of the experimental period, antibiotics OTC and KS were separately
administered to juvenile M. trossulus for one hour per day for three days in an effort to
produce a mortality curve. No mortality resulted, and the detailed results of this experiment
can be found in Appendix Figures 2 and 3.
For all four antibiotics that were tested, mortality levels in the dosage treatments (Figure 3)
were not significantly different from that in the controls (Kruskal-Wallis tests; OTC:
13

H4,4,4,4,4=3.34, df=4, p=0.502; CM: H4,4,4,4,4=5.74, df=4, p=0.219; KS: H4,4,4,4,4=3.68, df=4,
p=0.451; TxS: H4,4,4,4,4=3.00, df=4, p=0.558). Additionally, the second highest dosage of the
trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole mixture was selected for further use as this is almost
exactly the maximum solubility of sulfamethoxazole in an aqueous solution of a slightly
basic pH.

20

20

Average mortality (%)

Average mortality (%)

A.
15

10

5

B.

15

10

5

0

0
0

100

200

300

400

0

Oxytetracycline dosage (mg/L)

40

60

80

20

20

D.
Average mortality (%)

C.
Average mortality (%)

20

Chloramphenicol dosage (mg/L)

15

10

5

15

SE

10

5

0

0
0

5

10

15

20

Kanamycin sulfate dosage (mg/L)

0

7.5:75

15:150

22.5:225

30:300

Trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole dosage (mg/L)

Figure 3: Percent mortality of newly settled M. trossulus in A) oxytetracycline, B)
chloramphenicol, C) kanamycin sulfate, and D) trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole antibiotic
solutions administered for a half hour three times per day for five days. Each value is based
on four replicates of 10 individuals.

14

Dosage trials: combined antibiotic solutions
Given that the highest concentrations of individual antibiotics used in the first set of dosage
trials did not cause mortality, the highest dosage of each antibiotic (with the exception of
TxS) were combined into one ‘cocktail’, which was tested on both M. trossulus and N.
ostrina juveniles in a laboratory setting from 17 to 23 July 2014.
Mortality of juvenile M. trossulus and N. ostrina in the four dosages of the antibiotic cocktail
were not significantly different from the control (no antibiotic). For M. trossulus, the 75%
strength cocktail was selected for use in the field experiment (Figure 4) as it appeared that the
100% treatment may have caused some mortality that was undetectable by statistical analysis
(Kruskal-Wallis test, H4,4,4,4,4=5.38, df=4, p=0.251). In N. ostrina, there was no significant
difference in mortality between any of the groups (Figure 5) and as such the 100% cocktail
was selected for use in the field experiment (Kruskal-Wallis test, H7,7,7,7,7=5.32, df=4,
p=0.256).

15

SE

Average mortality (%)

20

15

10

5

0
0

25

50

75

100

Treatment (%)
Figure 4: Mortality of M. trossulus in the combined antibiotic dosage trial. Each value
represents the average of four replicates of 10 individuals. The full (100%) antibiotic cocktail
used in this dosage trial consisted of oxytetracycline at 400 mg/L, kanamycin sulfate at 20
mg/L, a 1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 22.5:225 mg/L, and chloramphenicol
at 80 mg/L. These antibiotics were mixed at 100% and then diluted to 75%, 50%, 25%, and
0% of full strength for the other treatments.

16

Average mortality (%)

10

8

6

4

SE

2

0
0

25

50

75

100

Treatment (%)
Figure 5: Mortality of N. ostrina in the combined antibiotic dosage trial. Each value
represents the average of seven replicates of 10 individuals. The full (100%) antibiotic
cocktail used in this dosage trial consisted of oxytetracycline at 400 mg/L, kanamycin sulfate
at 20 mg/L, a 1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 22.5:225 mg/L, and
chloramphenicol at 80 mg/L. These antibiotics were mixed at 100% and then diluted to 75%,
50%, 25%, and 0% of full strength for the other treatments.

Effects of antibiotics on mortality in the field
A first analysis compared mortality in the first trial (not pH balanced) with mortality in the
three subsequent trials. This analysis found there was no significant difference in mortality
between the pH-corrected and non-pH-corrected trials (Kruskal-Wallis test; M. trossulus:
H8,3,5,3=0.99, df=1, p=0.321; N. ostrina: H9,19,5,5=0.04, df=1, p=0.837). A second analysis
using each of the four field trials as blocked replicates compared mortality in the antibiotic
17

treatment with that in the control treatment. This analysis found that there was no significant
difference in mortality between the control and antibiotic treatment for either M. trossulus or
N. ostrina (Friedman nonparametric randomized block test; M. trossulus: X2r>0.00, df=1,
p>0.99; N. ostrina: X2r=0.33, df=1, p=0.564).

Average mortality (%)

10
Control treatment
Antibiotic treatment

8

6

SE
4

2

0
1

2

3

4

Experiment number
Figure 6: Mortality of M. trossulus in field trials 1-4. The 75% antibiotic cocktail used in
these field trials consisted of oxytetracycline at 300 mg/L, kanamycin sulfate at 15 mg/L, a
1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 16.88:168.75 mg/L, and chloramphenicol at
60 mg/L. Values of trials 1-4 in the control treatments are based on 8, 4, 5, and 3 replicates of
10 individuals, while values in the antibiotic treatments are based on 8, 3, 6, and 3 replicates
of 10 individuals, respectively.

18

6
Control treatment
Antibiotic treatment

Average mortality (%)

5

4

3
SE

2

1

0
1

2

3

4

Experiment number
Figure 7: Mortality of N. ostrina in field trials 1-4. The full strength (100%) antibiotic
cocktail used in these field trials consisted of oxytetracycline at 400 mg/L, kanamycin sulfate
at 20 mg/L, a 1:10 ratio of trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole at 22.5:225 mg/L, and
chloramphenicol at 80 mg/L. Values for trials 1-4 in the control treatments are based on 9,
19, 5, and 5 replicates of 10 individuals, while values in the antibiotic treatments are based
on 9, 20, 5, and 5 replicates of 10 individuals, respectively.

DISCUSSION
Size range of M. trossulus used in the experiments
The juvenile M. trossulus used in this study were of the smallest size classes available in the
field, most being between 0.250 and 0.750 mm. This size is consistent with the findings of
Martel et al. (2000), who determined the mean settling size of M. trossulus to be 0.330 mm
and the early juveniles to range in size up to about 1 mm.
19

Extent of M. trossulus exposure to the antibiotic solutions
Most M. trossulus (71%) were observed to open at some point during the 30 minutes of
exposure to the antibiotic cocktail. The actual proportion opening when placed in an
antibiotic solution was probably even higher, as mussels reflexively close when disturbed
and these observations required near constant disturbance of the mussels.
Dosage trials
Appropriate dosages of the antibiotics were determined experimentally prior to use in field
experiments, as very little dosage information is available for juvenile marine invertebrates.
The highest dosages of the individual antibiotics used in this experiment found to cause no
mortality of juveniles were: 400 mg/L of oxytetracycline (OTC), 20 mg/L of kanamycin
sulfate (KS), 80 mg/L of chloramphenicol (CM), and 30:300 mg/L of
trimethoprim:sulfamethoxazole (TxS), although 22.5:225 mg/L TxS was used in the
antibiotic cocktail as this concentration approaches the upper limit of solubility of
sulfamethoxazole (Dahlan et al. 2011). These findings are in line with previous studies using
these antibiotics, which exposed invertebrates to lower dosages than the maximum dosages
used in this study’s 100% antibiotic cocktail. However exposed invertebrates to antibiotics
for longer periods of time than were used in this study, and those longer exposure times did
not cause mortality of the invertebrates (Azam & Narayan, 2013).
In the present study, the above antibiotics were then combined into one ‘cocktail’ using the
aforementioned dosages which was administered to both M. trossulus and N. ostrina at
various concentrations, and no difference in mortality was observed between the control
groups and treatment groups. A dose of 75% was selected for the field experiments with M.

20

trossulus, however, as mortality was slightly higher in the 100% concentration treatment and
the use of small sample sizes may have precluded the statistical analysis from being
significant.
Effects of antibiotics on mortality in the field
The design of this study involved using small cages to house the juvenile invertebrates and
expose them to antibiotics, thereby (1) isolating the juveniles from non-infectious factors that
are known to cause juvenile mortality while leaving them exposed to infectious diseases, and
(2) evaluating if the remaining mortality could be decreased by protecting the juveniles from
bacterial infection.
Levels of mortality of both M. trossulus and N. ostrina in the control treatments in the field
experiments were much lower than natural field mortality rates reported in other studies of
juveniles over similar time frames. Mortality of M. trossulus in this study was 0 – 6.7% over
five days. In contrast, Phillips (2002 and 2004) found mortality levels of 77-97% and 69-99%
in M. trossulus juveniles after two weeks in the field. Meden (2012) reported 54 and 64%
mortality of Perna perna mussels within two days of settlement over two different sampling
cycles.
Mortality of N. ostrina in the present study was 0.5 - 4.0% over a five day period. This is far
below the mortality rates reported by other studies with juvenile N. ostrina. Moran and Emlet
(2001) found 35-60% mortality of N. ostrina juveniles after nine days in the field.
The low levels of juvenile mortality observed in this study are likely because this is the first
study that used an enclosed cage design, which maintains the juveniles in a protected and
submerged state, removing many common causes of juvenile marine invertebrate mortality in
21

the intertidal zone. These include predation, temperature stress, desiccation stress, UV
radiation stress, and major fluctuations in pH and salinity (reviewed in Gosselin & Qian,
1997). The cage design also allowed complete recovery of all of the juveniles as opposed to
the open ‘settling pad’ or walled arena designs normally used and which necessitate use of
absence as a proxy for mortality. The present findings therefore reveal that infectious agents
cause very little (≤6%) or no juvenile mortality.
The low levels of mortality that did occur in the present field trials were not the result of
bacterial infection. Statistical analyses revealed no difference in mortality between the
controls and the antibiotic treatments, indicating that bacterial infection did not cause
juvenile mortality in these two species. The few individuals that did die during the trials may
have been killed by fungal or viral infections, handling stress, yolk depletion, or
developmental and genetic failure, all of which remained as potential stressors in the
experimental design.
It should be noted that this study did not take into account the potential interactive effects of
elevated temperature and desiccation stress on an animal’s susceptibility to infectious stress.
Knowing which factors cause mortality of juveniles is important because the amount and
timing of juvenile mortality can affect other factors relevant to the species, such as
abundance and distribution. Knowledge of the selective pressures that are in place early in
juvenile life can also help to elucidate the evolution of adaptive traits, help focus
conservation efforts on factors limiting population recovery, and help obtain estimates of
invertebrate recruitment for fisheries.

22

Implications and future directions
Low levels of mortality when exposed to the natural microbial community were likely a
consequence of the nature of the invertebrate immune system. Like any marine organism,
marine invertebrates are constantly surrounded by potential pathogens. There are anywhere
from 103 - 106 bacteria and 107 viruses per millilitre of sea water (Austin, 1988; Børsheim et
al., 1990). As such, marine animals have developed a myriad of ways of coping with these
stressors. For example, recent research on invertebrate immune systems indicates that
although they do not possess an adaptive immune system, their innate immune system may
have ways of responding to subsequent infections more strongly than on the first exposure, a
model which is being referred to as ‘trained immunity’(Cong et al., 2008; Ng et al., 2014;
Quintin et al., 2014).
Invertebrates have also developed ways to pass their immunity on to their offspring, before
the offspring can protect themselves. Egg masses of many invertebrates, such as polychaetes
(Benkendorff et al., 2001), cephalopods (Atkinson, 1973), and many species of molluscs
(Benkendorff et al., 2001; Lim et al., 2007; Hathaway et al., 2010; Peters et al., 2012) have
been shown to possess antibacterial activity, often in the form of antimicrobial peptides
passed down from the parent to the egg mass. This includes the leathery egg capsules of snail
species in the same family as N. ostrina (Benkendorff et al., 2001). The antibacterial activity
of these egg capsules shows a general trend of being highest when the capsules are freshly
laid and decreasing as the embryos develop into juveniles, indicating this characteristic is a
parental investment (Benkendorff et al., 2001). Further, the immune system of marine snails
appears to become competent only after metamorphosis, the juveniles having relatively high

23

survivorship in a laboratory setting whereas the veligers dying of bacterial infection in a short
time frame after being removed from the egg capsule (Pechenik et al., 1984; Lord, 1986).
In species that employ a swimming larval stage for dispersal (such as M. trossulus), the
parents still protect their offspring from infection until the offspring become immune
competent. For example, the mRNA expressed by M. galloprovincialis larvae pre- and postmetamorphosis are different: those expressed pre-metamorphosis are parental investments
and those expressed post-metamorphosis are actively produced by the juvenile itself
(Balseiro et al., 2013). Further, the mRNA expressed by the juveniles immediately post
metamorphosis have a similar range and magnitude to the mRNA expressed by adult M.
galloprovincialis, indicating that the juveniles have immune systems similar to that of the
adults immediately after metamorphosis (Balseiro et al., 2013).
Emerging is a pattern of parental immune factors protecting the offspring until a certain
point, usually metamorphosis, at which time the juveniles begin producing their own immune
factors. That pattern could help explain the results found here: no mortality from bacterial
infection was observed because after metamorphosis the juveniles had already developed a
competent immune system. This result also suggests that bacterial outbreaks that impact
adult populations would also affect juveniles and juvenile recruitment.
Given the findings of the present study, future research should examine the effectiveness of
the antibiotics used in this study on the bacteria associated with juvenile M. trossulus and N.
ostrina. This could be achieved by conducting bacterial assays testing (1) the effectiveness of
the antibiotics themselves, and (2) the types of bacteria harboured by antibiotic-treated versus
control invertebrates. This assay could be completed by homogenating small samples of M.
trossulus and N. ostrina, plating the homogenate on marine agar, and observing the number
24

and types of bacterial colonies grown. A positive assay examining if bacteria can cause
invertebrate mortality would also be useful and could be achieved by concentrating bacteria
normally found in seawater, soaking the invertebrates in water with an increasing bacterial
load, and examining when mortality begins to increase.

25

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30

APPENDIX

Proportion in size range (%)

80
08/13/2014
08/15/2014
08/17/2014
60

40

20

0

0 .2

5

.
1-0

50
0 .5

0

.
1-0

75
0 .7

5

.
1 -1

00

0
1 .0

1+

Size range (mm)
Figure 1: Total proportion of Mytilus trossulus used in experimentation displayed by size
range and date of measurement. A total of 235 individuals were photographed and digitally
measured, 70 from 8/13/2014, 109 from 8/15/2014, and 56 from 8/17/2014.

31

Average mortality per replicate (%)

20
Day 3 mortality
Day 5 mortality
15

10

SE

5

0
0

25

50

75

100

Oxytetracycline dosage (mg/L)
Figure 2: Mortality of M. trossulus in the oxytetracycline dosage experiment conducted from
21/06/2014-26/06/2014, mortality being counted on 24/06/2014 (day 3) and 26/06/2014 (day
5). Between counts some individuals were lost, resulting in some day 5 mortality being lower
than day 3 mortality. Each value represents the average of five replicates of 10 individuals.

32

Average mortality per replicate (%)

20
Day 3 mortality
Day 5 mortality
15

SE

10

5

0
0

10

20

30

40

Kanamycin sulfate dosage (mg/L)
Figure 3: Mortality of M. trossulus in the kanamycin sulfate dosage experiment conducted
from 24/06/2014-29/06/2014, mortality being counted on 27/06/2014 (day 3) and 29/06/2014
(day 5). Between counts some individuals were lost, resulting in some day 5 mortality being
lower than day 3 mortality. Each value represents the average of four replicates of 10
individuals.

33