Mikrocytos mackini is the etiological agent of Denman Island disease, which causes significant mortalities in commercially important bivalve species, including the Pacific
oyster, Crassostrea gigas. A close relative of M. mackini, Mikrocytos sp., was recently detected in oysters
imported into France from Canada. In this study, we examined Pacific oysters
from the northern coast of the Yellow Sea, China. Of the one hundred samples
examined histologically, a microcell parasite was found in the tissues of
four oysters. To identify whether the parasite was Mikrocytos sp., DNA was extracted
from the oysters and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplifications were
performed with primers (Mikrocytos-F and Mikrocytos-R), which yielded the
expected 522 bp fragment. DNA sequencing of these products confirmed that
they were identical to the corresponding 18S region of Mikrocytos sp. (100%) and
had close similarity to M. mackini (89%). In situ hybridization (ISH) also was
performed in this study, and the primer pair MM-like (CCTGTCCTATGTCGGGCAGG)
hybridized with the Pacific oyster parasite. This is the first report of
Mikrocytos sp. in the Pacific oyster from the coast of China. Although this study
suggests a low prevalence of the parasite in China, its potential threat to
aquaculture should be considered.