bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.03.15.435441; this version posted March 15, 2021. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under aCC-BY 4.0 International license. 1 First isolation of virulent Tenacibaculum maritimum 2 strains from diseased orbicular batfish (Platax orbicularis) 3 farmed in Tahiti Island 4 Pierre Lopez 1¶, Denis Saulnier 1¶*, Shital Swarup-Gaucher 2, Rarahu David 2, Christophe Lau 2, 5 Revahere Taputuarai 2, Corinne Belliard 1, Caline Basset 1, Victor Labrune 1, Arnaud Marie 3, Jean 6 François Bernardet 4, Eric Duchaud 4 7 8 9 1 Ifremer, IRD, Institut Louis‐Malardé, Univ Polynésie française, EIO, Labex Corail, F‐98719 10 Taravao, Tahiti, Polynésie française, France 11 2 DRM, Direction des ressources marines, Fare Ute Immeuble Le caill, BP 20 – 98713 Papeete, Tahiti, 12 Polynésie française 13 3 Labofarm Finalab Veterinary Laboratory Group, 4 rue Théodore Botrel, 22600 Loudéac, France 14 4 Unité VIM, INRAE, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France 15 * Corresponding author 16 E-mail:
[email protected] 1 bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.03.15.435441; this version posted March 15, 2021. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under aCC-BY 4.0 International license. 17 Abstract 18 The orbicular batfish (Platax orbicularis), also called 'Paraha peue' in Tahitian, is the most important 19 marine fish species reared in French Polynesia.