INFECÇÃO POR Kudoa sp. NA MUSCULATURA ESQUELÉTICA DE Genyatremus luteus Blochii,1795 (PERCIFORME: HAEMULIDAE), PEIXE AMAZÔNICO

Myxosporids are cellular parasites found in several organs of freshwater or estuarine fish. This group is economically important because it causes disease in countless fishes, including those of commercial value. Kudoa is prominent in this group for causing post-mortem myoliquefaction in the fish, making them unsuitable for human consumption and therefore the knowledge about this genus is of extreme importance. The aim of this work was to describe and characterize the Kudoa genus found in skeletal muscle in Genyatremus luteus . Twenty two specimens of Genyatremus luteus were collected in Sao Caetano de Odivelas northeast of Para. After the capture, the animals were placed into plastic bags with artificial aeration and transported live to the Carlos Azevedo Research Laboratory (LPCA), at the Federal Rural University of Amazonia, where they were maintained in an aquarium. The animals were anesthetized, sacrificed and subsequently necropsied for examination under light microscopy (ML). Fragments of skeletal musculature were removed and isolated, tetracapsulated spores with the quadrangular or pseudo-quadrangular body, determinants of the Kudoa genus were found. These parasite containing fragments were removed and fixed, dehydrated, diaphanized and impregnated in liquid paraffin. Histological section and H & E staining were performed, allowing evidence of cystic formation within and between muscle fibers. Complementary studies are being carried out to identify the species found in order to increase the knowledge about the health status of the fish from the Amazon region in the state of Para. KEYWORDS: Genyatremus luteus, Mioliquefaction pos-mortem , Myxozoa.