STUDIES ON HISTOLOGICAL AND HISTOPATHOLOGICAL MYCOSIS VARIATIONS OF CHANNA STRIATUS (BLOCH) FOUND INFECTED WITH ASPERIGILLUS FUMIGATUS AND ASPERGILLUS NIGER SPP.CAUSED EUS CHARECTERSTICS.

The present investigation deals with the histological and histopathological altarations in Channa striatus infected with fungi Aspergillus fumigates and Aspergillus niger. Fresh water murrels were collected from Dharmasagar and Hasanparthy lakes and Local fish markets of Warangal district. This is due to the nature of their habitats as many native species of fish suffer from living beneath turbid water. Among the recent emerging infection diseases responsible for severe population declines in plant and animal taxa, fungal and fungi-like microbes have emerged as significant contributors. Isolated fungi from infected fish bodies were identified as Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillus niger. Histopathologically different kinds of destructions were observed in Skin, Muscles, Gills and Liver of the infected fish. Histopathological observations of stained sections of infected fishes revealed pathological lesions of varying severity in studied organs including skin (exhibits compeletely lost epidermis, destiended cells, many of cells lost their cytoplasm and nuclei. Necrotized muscular layer with the formation of granulomas and encysted conidiophores), gills ( hyperplasia and hyperplasia of lamellar epithelium, fusion of lamellae, rod like structures of secondary gill lamellae, cystic- like lesions) and liver ( hypermia and haemorrhage, bile duct hyperplasia, dialated sinuses, interstitial oedema, monocellular necrosis, nuclear degeneration and hypertrophy in hepatocytes). The present study is aimed to assess the histopathological impact of fungal infection of an air breathing freshwater teleost C. striatus.  Penetrating fungal hyphae were observed in skin and complete muscles were observed with formation of mycotic fibrillar granulomas. This is concluded that the mycosis variations in certain histological and histopathologically, exerted destructive effects on skin, gills and liver of Channa striatus.