Re: New Fish Room -Reply

[cfonda@sentientconsult.com]

Chris wrote:
>>
>> and another factor is that I've heard of UV sterilzers bringing down the
>> immune system of fish too... over generations... or over a long period
of
>> time...
>>
And Kathy responded:
>> Interesting, if the water was treated by UV sterilizers before it hit
the
>> fish tank it shouldn't matter.  Unless it was creating some type of free
>> radical/oxidizing agent that then attacked the immune system.  But I
>> haven't heard anything like that for humans and UV is used in various
>> things all the time.
>>
>> I would think that fish would be okay. (unless they were treated with UV
>> too)
>>
>> Anyone have any experience with this?
Actually, what Chris is referring to is not an effect of any harmful agents
introduced into the water by UV, because there are not any.  Rather, what
he is referring to is caused by the water being "too clean."  Without
exposure to pathogens, immune systems will occasionally "forget" how to
fight them.  An animal's immune system does not have antibodies to a
pathogen until it has been exposed to that pathogen (with the exception of
mammals taking their mother's milk).  An environment where an animal gets
regular exposure to relatively normal (read as low, but measurable) levels
of pathogens will have a normal, healthy immune system with antibodies to a
variety of ailments.  If however, an animal grows up without exposure to
pathogens (like a fish raised in a tank with a UV system), its immune
system will not have the antibodies and may therefore be weak.  This is
less of a concern with fish who are raised in normal tanks and introduced
to tanks with UV systems when they are adults.  I, however, would be very
cautious about introducing a fish that was raised in a tank with UV
sterilization into a tank without it.

My two cents,

--Cliff



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