Mud Crab Reovirus (MCRV):
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Mud Crab Reovirus (MCRV) is also known as Sleeping Disease.
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The virus belongs to the “Reoviridae” family.
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Reoviridae is a family of double-stranded RNA viruses. This virus has a wide host range including vertebrates, invertebrates, plants, protists and fungi.
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Reovirus mainly infects connective tissue cells of the hepatopancreas, gills and intestine in mud crabs.
What is Mud Crab?
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Scylla serrata commonly known as the Mud crab, Green crab or Mangrove Crab is an economically important species of crab found in the estuaries and mangroves of India.
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There has been a huge interest in the aquaculture of this species due to their high demand/ price, high flesh content and rapid growth rates in captivity.
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In India, crab culture is developing very fast in the states of AP, Kerala, West Bengal and Odisha.