DECRYPTION – Researchers show that the disease is very present in commercial and recreational ports, favoring the spread of the disease to schools of wild mussels.
A contagious cancer affecting mussels is spreading around the world via shipping. According to researchers from the CNRS and the University of Montpellier, who published their results on February 21 in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, this form of leukemia is more common in bivalves living in seaports than in the wild. “This suggests that ports constitute epidemiological centers where cancer occurs (called MtrBTN2 by scientists, Editor’s note) spreads via maritime routes », indicates Nicolas Bierne, researcher at the Institute of Evolutionary Sciences in Montpellier, and author of the study. This discovery highlights the importance of preventive measures implemented on docks and boats to limit the movement of invasive species or pathogens.
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