Monitoring of the immune efficiency of Mytilus galloprovincialis in Adriatic sea mussel farms in 2006: regular changes of cytotoxicity during the year

By monitoring the course of hemolymph cytolytic activity in Mytilus galloprovincialis during 2006, we have observed important fluctuations in the percentage of cytotoxic animals over the year. The changes seem to be correlated with seasonal variations in the temperature, but observations in mussels kept in aquaria indicated that this parameter is not the main cause of the fluctuations. Data presented here suggest that normal levels of cytotoxicity can be predicted in a population for a specific period of the year, therefore confirming the value of this parameter in determining the immune efficiency of mussels at a given time.