Received: 10 May 2019 Revised: 15 August 2019 DOI: 10.1111/jwas.12649 Accepted: 17 August 2019 REVIEW A review of reported seaweed diseases and pests in aquaculture in Asia Georgia M. Ward1 | Joseph P. Faisan Jr2 | Elizabeth J. Cottier-Cook3 | Claire Gachon3 | Anicia Q. Hurtado2,4 | Phaik E. Lim5 | Ivy Matoju6 | Flower E. Msuya6 | David Bass7 | Juliet Brodie1 1Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, UK 2Aquaculture Department, Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center, Iloilo, Philippines 3Scottish Association for Marine Science, Scottish Marine Institute, Oban, UK 4University of the Philippines Visayas, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences - Institute of Aquaculture, Iloilo, Philippines 5Marine Biotechnology Unit, Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences (IOES), University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 6Botany Department, University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 7Cefas, Dorset, UK Correspondence Juliet Brodie, Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD, UK. Email: j.brodie@nhm.ac.uk Funding information UK Research and Innovation Fund, Grant/ Award Number: BB/P027806/1 Abstract Seaweeds have been used as a food for centuries in Asia and are increasingly exploited as a source for dietary supplements, animal feed, chemicals, and biofuels. In recent years, there has been an increase in the prevalence of diseases and pests in these aquaculture crops, with a subsequent reduction in their quantity and commercial value. In this article, we review diseases that have been reported in the scientific literature for species of red and brown seaweeds. We have focused on the major seaweed crops grown in Asia, where much of this production is centered. We also provide information on disease management and biosecurity and some observations on future directions. KEYWORDS cultivated seaweeds, hydrocolloids, ice-ice, Olpidiopsis 1 | INTRODUCTION The commercial production of seaweeds has expanded greatly over the past century, with various species exploited for food and dietary supplements, animal feed, chemicals, and biofuels (Tiwari & Troy, 2015). Much of this production is centered in Asia, where Pyropia, Undaria, and Saccharina spp. are cultivated for human This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of the World Aquaculture Society published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The World Aquaculture Society. J World Aquacult Soc. 2020;51:815–828. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/jwas 815 816 WARD ET AL. consumption (J. K. Kim, Yarish, Hwang, Park, & Kim, 2017). Other species are grown for chemicals, including agar (Gracilaria spp.; Francavillla, Franchi, Monteleone, & Caroppo, 2013) and carrageenan (Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp.) (Lim, Yang, Maggs, & Brodie, 2017). The total production of the main cultivated species in Asia, both in metric tons and value (US$), for the year 2016 as given by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization is summarized in Table 1 (Food and Agriculture Organization, 2018). Seaweeds have been used as food for centuries in Asia, with records dating back as far as the third century in China (Yang, Lu, & Brodie, 2017), fourth century in Japan, and the sixth century in Korea (McHugh, 2003). Asian countries remain the largest consumers; however, products are increasingly exported to Europe, North America, and Africa as sushi consumption grows in popularity (Chen & Xu, 2005). The development of commercial cultivation of seaweeds for food began in Japan in the 1920s as demand began to outstrip natural yields (Chen & Xu, 2005). Today, China is the largest producer of seaweeds for human consumption (Food and Agriculture Organization, 2018), although large-scale production also occurs in both Japan and the Republic of Korea (G. H. Kim, Moon, Kim, Shim, & Klochkova, 2014). The exploitation of seaweeds for hydrocolloids also dates back centuries. It was commercialized in Japan in the 1930s, before rapidly expanding into surrounding countries following the Second World War to meet rising demand (McHugh, 2003). The eucheumatoid species Kappaphycus spp. and Eucheuma denticulatum are most commonly used in hydrocolloid production because of their high kappa- and iota-carrageenan content, with Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines being major producers of these species in Southeast Asia (Food and Agriculture Organization, 2018). In recent years, there has been a decline in yields of crops grown for both human consumption and hydrocolloid production. This decline has been attributed to an increase in the prevalence of diseases and pests because of the intensification of aquaculture activity (G. H. Kim et al., 2014; Loureiro, Gachon, & Rebours, 2015; Tsiresy et al., 2016). As the seaweed aquaculture sector expands, the importance of furthering our understanding of diseases and pests becomes more apparent. Intensive culture of macroalgae favors more frequent and damaging disease outbreaks (Gachon, Sime-Ngando, Strittmatter, Chambouvet, & Kim, 2010) as is the case in other aquaculture sectors, including finfish and shellfish (Petterson, Osmundsen, Aunsmo, Mardones, & Rich, 2015; Shinn et al., 2015). Table 2 lists published reports of disease incidence in major cultivated species in Asia and includes bacteria, protists, viruses, and other algae. Farmed seaweeds are also vulnerable to grazing pest species, including copepods (Tsukidate, 1991), amphipods (Kang, 1982), and fish (Mantri et al., 2017). Despite the economic importance of these crops on local, national, and international scales, only a few disease agents are well characterized, and little is known about effective treatment or mitigation strategies (G. H. Kim et al., 2014). T A B L E 1 Aquaculture production values for the main cultured species in Asia in the year 2016 as listed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Species Pyropia spp. Undaria spp. Saccharina spp. Gracilaria spp. Eucheumatoids (Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp.) Main producer(s) Japan, Korea, China Japan, Korea, China Japan, China, Korea China, Vietnam, Indonesia The Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia Uses Food (nori) Food (wakame) Food (kombu) Agar production Hydrocolloid production Production in 2016 (metric ton) 1,352,520 2,069,682 8,219,210 2,942,534 10,493,540 Value (US$) 1,114,486,140 1,428,285,720 4,084,176,750 1,745,211,960 1,219,519,890 WARD ET AL. 817 T A B L E 2 Diseases and disease agents of red and brown seaweeds in aquaculture in Asia Host Disease Gracilariopsis Rotten thallus heteroclada syndrome Disease agents Bacillus spp. Taxonomy Gram-negative bacteria Kappaphycus alvarezii K. alvarezii and K. striatus Epiphytic filamentous algae Melanothamnus (as Neosiphonia) apiculata Ice-ice disease CytophagaFlavobacterium complex, Vibrio sp. Alteromonas, Pseudoalteromonas, Aurantomonas Aspergillus ochraceus, A. terreus, Phoma sp. Undetermined Rhodophyta (Eukaryota) Gram-negative bacteria Gram-negative bacteria Ascomycota (Eukaryota) Undetermined Distribution Philippines (in tank-held stocks) Philippines Indonesia Malaysia Philippines Indonesia Philippines India Undetermined Undetermined China Pyropia yezoensis Neosiphonia sp., Polysiphonia sp., Gracilaria sp., Hypnea sp., Acanthophora sp. Epiphytic filamentous algae Cladophora sp. Red rot disease Pythium porphyrae Rhodophyta (Eukaryota) Chlorophyta (Eukaryota) Oomyceta (Eukaryota) China China China Korea Pythium chondricola Oomyceta (Eukaryota) Japan Korea China Alternaria sp. Olpidiopsis disease (“Chytrid blight”) Olpidiopsis sp. Olpidiopsis pyropiae Ascomycota (Eukaryota) Oomyceta (Eukaryota) Korea China Korea Oomyceta (Eukaryota) Korea White spot disease Phoma sp. Coelomycete (Eukaryota) China Korea References Lavilla-Pitogo (1992), Martinez and Padilla (2016) Vairappan et al. (2008) Largo, Fukami, and Nishijima (1995) Syafitri, Prayitno, Ma'ruf, and Radjasa (2017) Solis, Draeger, and de la Cruz(2010) Arasamuthu and Patterson Edwards (2018) Pang, Liu, Liu and Li (2015) Pang et al. (2015) Pang et al. (2015) Ding and Ma (2005 G.H. Kim et al. (2014), Lee et al. (2017) Kazama (1979) Lee et al. (2017) Qiu, Mao, Tang, Tang and Mo (2019) Mo, Li, Kong, Tang, and Mao (2016) Ding and Ma (2005) Kwak, Klochkova, Jeong, and Kim (2017) Klochkova, Shin, Moon, Motomura, and Kim (2016) Guan et al. (2013) G.H. Kim et al. (2014) (Continues) 818 T A B L E 2 (Continued) Host Disease Diatom felt Disease agents Taxonomy Fragellaria sp., Licmophora Bacillariophyta flabellata, Melosira sp., (Eukaryota) Navicula sp. Distribution Korea Cyanobacteria Filamentous and coccoid Cyanobacteria felt blue-green algae Anaaki disease Pseudomonas sp. Vibrio sp. Gram-negative bacteria Korea Japan Korea Green-spot disease Flavobacterium sp. LAD-1 Gram-negative bacteria PyroV1 Virus Korea Korea White blight disease Unknown Unknown Korea Unnamed disease “Pseudomonas-like” bacteria Diatom blooms Eucampia zodiacus Coscinodiscus granii Asteroplanus karianus Gram-negative bacteria Bacillariophyta (Eukaryota) Japan Japan Bacillariophyta Japan (Eukaryota) Bacillariophyta Japan (Eukaryota) Pyropia tenera Red rot disease Undetermined Green-spot disease PyroV1 Pyropia dentata Green-spot disease PyroV1 Saccharina japonica Red-spot disease Alteromonas sp. Undetermined Virus Japan Korea Virus Korea Gram-negative Japan bacteria Hole-rotten disease Pseudoalteromonas elyakovii Pseudoalteromonas bacteriolytica Pseudoalteromonas, Vibrio, Halomonas Macrococcus sp. Gram-negative bacteria Gram-negative bacteria Gram-negative bacteria Japan Japan China China WARD ET AL. References G.H. Kim et al. (2014) G.H. Kim et al. (2014) Fujita (1990); G.H. Kim et al. (2014) G.H. Kim et al. (2014) Suniari et al. (1995) G. H. Kim, Klochkova, Lee, and Im (2016) Lee et al. (2012); Cultured Aquatic Species Information Programme, FAO Yamanoi & Takami (2008) Nishikawa, Hori, Tanida and Imai (2007) Nishikawa and Yamaguchi (2007) Shikata, Matsubara, Yoshida, Sakamoto and Yamaguchi (2015) Arasaki (1947) G. H. Kim et al. (2016) G. H. Kim et al. (2016) Yumoto, Ezura, and Kimura (1989); Sawabe et al. (2000) Sawabe et al. (2000) Sawabe et al. (1998) Wang et al. (2008) Wang et al. (2014) (Continues) WARD ET AL. T A B L E 2 (Continued) Host Disease Malformation disease Disease agents Taxonomy Gram-positive bacteria Distribution Undaria pinnatifida Twisted frond Mycoplasma-like disease organisms Bacteria China Green rot disease Pseudomonas spp. and insufficient light Gram-negative China bacteria; environmental White rot disease Excessive light; insufficient nutrient availability; high water temperature Environmental China Blister disease Dilution of seawater with Environmental freshwater runoff following heavy rainfall China Shot hole disease Aeromonas, Flavobacterium, Moraxella, Pseudoalteromonas, Vibrio Gram-negative Japan bacteria Spot-rotting disease (“Anaakisho” Unknown Bacteria Japan Green-spot rot Unknown Bacteria Japan Korea Yellow hole disease Unknown Bacteria Japan Spot decay Halomonas venusta Bacteria China Green decay disease Pin-hole disease Unnamed disease Brown endophytic disease Vibrio logei Gram-negative bacteria Amenophia orientalis, Parathalestris infestus, Scutellidum sp., Thalestris sp. Copepoda (Eukaryota) Ceinina japonica Amphipoda (Eukaryota) Laminariocolax aecidoides Ochrophyta (Eukaryota) Laminarionema elsbetiae Ochrophyta (Eukaryota) China Japan Korea Korea Japan Japan Abbreviation: FAO, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 819 References Wang et al. (2014) Wang et al. (2014) Wang et al. (2014) Wang et al. (2014) Tsukidate (1991) Kito, Akiyama, and Sasaki (1976) Kang (1982) Ishikawa and Saga (1989) Ma, Zhang, Changfa et al. (1997); Ma, Zhang, Fan et al. (1997); Ma, Yang, Wan, Ge and Zhang (1998) Jiang, Ma, Zhang, and Xu (1997) Tsukidate (1991) Kang (1982) Akiyama (1977) Kawai and Tokuyama (1995) 820 WARD ET AL. 2 | THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF SEAWEED DISEASES AND PESTS The occurrence of diseases and pests results in losses of 25–30% of harvested volumes of Saccharina japonica at a regional scale in China (Wang et al., 2014). Some of these diseases are known to be triggered by abiotic factors (Table 2), including either strong or insufficient light (white rot disease and green rot disease, respectively; Wang et al., 2014), while others are thought to result from the action of pathogenic microbes, often in combination with unfavorable environmental conditions. Disease incidence is estimated to reduce the output of Korean Pyropia farms by up to 20% in some regions (G. H. Kim et al., 2014), with much of this loss attributed to the oomycete pathogen Olpidiopsis pyropiae. (Klochkova et al., 2016; Klochkova, Shim, Hwang, & Kim, 2012) and a condition known as green-spot disease, now known to be caused by the virus PyroV1 (G. H. Kim et al., 2016). Although disease-affected crops may still be harvestable and marketable, the lower quality and yield has a significant negative economic impact on these crops (G. H. Kim et al., 2014). Losses of eucheumatoid stocks because of diseases and pests in the Philippines have resulted in a reduction of 15% of production yields, which is equivalent to almost $100 million on an annual basis (Cottier-Cook et al., 2016). In the Philippines, over 200,000 families work in seaweed aquaculture (Pedrosa, 2017); however, problems brought about by epiphyte infestations and ice–ice disease have resulted in diminishing culture stocks and reduced carrageenan quality, which in turn leads to low market value, loss of income, and loss of job opportunities, particularly for marginal seaweed farmers. 3 | SIGNIFICANT DISEASES AND PESTS OF CULTIVATED SEAWEEDS Because of their detrimental impact on valuable Pyropia stocks, the oomycete pathogens Pythium porphyrae and Olpidiopsis porphyrae are perhaps the best-studied seaweed diseases. Red rot disease, attributed to P. porphyrae in 1977 (Takahashi, Ichitani, & Sasaki, 1977), has caused significant reductions in the yield and quality of Pyropia crops since it was first recorded in Japan in the 1940s (Arasaki, 1947). Olpidiopsis disease, initially thought to be caused by a chytrid pathogen (and therefore referred to as “chytrid blight”), was also first recorded in Japan (Arasaki, 1960) but has since been recorded in Korea and China (G. H. Kim et al., 2014). Interactions between oomycete pathogens and their Pyropia hosts have been subject to much study (Klochkova et al., 2012; Uppalapti & Fujita, 2002), although to date, these studies have offered little insight into biosecurity strategies that may limit the impact and spread of these diseases in culture environments. Recently, symptoms recognized as red rot disease have been attributed to other disease agents, namely, the closely related oomycete Pythium chondricola (Qiu et al., 2019) and the fungus Alternaria sp. (Mo et al., 2016). Similarly, Olpidiopsis disease has been linked to another Olpidiopsis species, O. pyropia (Klochkova et al., 2016), suggesting that the relationship between disease symptoms and disease agents may not be straightforward. Several disease conditions listed in Table 2 have been attributed to the presence of one or more bacterial species. Ice–ice disease, affecting Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp., is characterized by a whitening of the thallus in response to environmental stress and the action of opportunistic pathogenic bacteria (Ask & Azanza, 2002; Doty & Alvarez, 1975; Uyenco, Saniel, & Jacinto, 1981). Several bacterial species and complexes have been linked to ice–ice disease, including Cytophaga-Flavobacterium complex (Largo et al., 1995) and the presence of both Alteromonas and Pseudoalteromonas (Syafitri et al., 2017). Solis et al. (2010) also demonstrated the ability of marine fungi (Aspergillus spp. and Phoma sp.) to induce ice–ice symptoms in both Kappaphycus alvarezii and K. striatum under laboratory conditions. However, the exact mechanisms by which these organisms are able to cause the progression of ice–ice symptoms in Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp. are as yet unknown, as is the role of environmental stress in inducing disease. WARD ET AL. 821 As knowledge of seaweed diseases and the range of micro-organisms associated with them increases, it becomes necessary to move beyond the one-disease-one-pathogen paradigm toward the pathobiome concept (Bass, Stentiford, Wang, Koskella, & Tyler, 2019). Pathobiotic systems are those in which multiple host-associated organisms (encompassing prokaryotes, eukaryotes, and viruses) are associated with reduced host health status as a result of interactions between members of that set, the host, and environmental factors. Even where a primary agent can be identified, its effect is often moderated by other symbionts. In seaweeds particularly, which are known to be associated with a wide diversity of microbial symbionts that influence their development, ecology, and evolution (Egan et al., 2013; Brodie et al., 2016 and refs therein), the potential for invasion by opportunistic pathogens, environmentally induced pathogenesis, and microbial dysbioses to initiate or exacerbate disease are diverse and omnipresent. Furthermore, a particular set of clinical signs of disease that might suggest a common cause by a primary pathogen may in fact have multiple etiologies, which present in similar ways (the “moving target” hypothesis; Sutherland et al., 2016). Among the most significant pests of commercially cultivated seaweed species are epiphytic algae. Epiphytic filamentous algae (EFA) are responsible for a significant decrease in both the production biomass and carrageenan quality of cultivated Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp. in Southeast Asia and thereby affect both the income and job security of farmers in productive regions (Critchley et al., 2004; Hurtado & Critchley, 2006a; Hurtado & Critchley, 2006b). EFA are prevalent in all major eucheumatoid-producing countries and in countries with smaller, but developing, industries, including Madagascar and China (Pang et al., 2015; Tsiresy et al., 2016). Outbreaks of Polysiphonia have been reported as the cause of massive declines in K. alvarezii production in the Philippines and Malaysia (Hurtado & Critchley, 2006a; Vairappan, 2006), and die-offs of the same crop species have been attributed to the presence of Melanothamnus (as Neosiphonia) savatieri) in Chinese farms since 2009 (Pang, Liu, Liu, & Lin, 2011). Epiphyte infestations have been linked to abiotic stressors affecting host fitness, including the temperature, salinity, and current of seawater and intensity of light and nutrient availability (Hurtado & Critchley, 2006a; Korpinen et al., 2007; Pang et al., 2011). Heavy infections with epiphytic algae are known to cause damage to the cortex of Kappaphycus and thus leave the host vulnerable to infection by opportunistic bacteria (Vairappan et al., 2008). 4 | SEAWEED DISEASE MANAGEMENT AND BIOSECURITY In order to attempt to eliminate or mitigate the impact and spread of disease and pest outbreaks on seaweed aquaculture, several treatments or mitigation strategies have been used. The washing of Pyropia blades in acid solutions is a widespread practice and is often used in an attempt to control all diseases (G. H. Kim et al., 2014). Sakaguchi, Park, Kakinuma, and Amano (2001) showed that washing thalli in an acid of pH 2.0 for 5 min was effective for suppressing the development of red rot disease, although exposure times are often closer to 30 seconds in practice and so are largely ineffective (G. H. Kim et al., 2014). This exposure to acidic conditions may, however, be partially effective for the treatment of green algae, diatoms, and cyanobacteria, the latter two of which are caused by the colonization of the blade surface by micro-organisms (Table 3). No effective treatment is yet available for either green-spot disease or Olpidiopsis disease, the two most severe diseases of Pyropia crops (G. H. Kim et al., 2014). However, there is evidence that fungal endophytes associated with brown algae produce bioactive metabolites that have the potential to protect against pathogen infection and have been shown to inhibit infection of Pyropia yezoensis by O. pyropiae and P. porphyrae (Prado, Vallet, Gachon, Strittmatter, & Kim, 2017; Vallet, Strittmatter, Murúra, Lacoste, Dupont, Hubas, Genta-Jouve, Gachon, Kim, & Prado, 2018; Qiu et al., 2019). Changing cultivation conditions, particularly the repositioning of cultivation ropes to modify exposure to light and more favorable salinities, are effective measures that can be taken to reduce the severity of diseases caused by exposure of S. japonica to unfavorable abiotic conditions (Wang et al., 2014). 822 WARD ET AL. T A B L E 3 Symptoms of diseases that have been reported in red and brown seaweeds in aquaculture in Asia Disease name Rotten thallus syndrome Epiphytic filamentous algae Ice–ice disease Red rot disease Olpidiopsis disease (“Chytrid blight”) White-spot disease Diatom felt Cyanobacteria felt Anaaki disease Green-Spot Disease White-blight Unnamed disease Diatom blooms Red-spot disease Hole-rotten disease Malformation disease' Twisted frond disease Green rot disease Host Gracilariopsis heteroclada Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp. Kappaphycus and Eucheuma spp. Pyropia yezoensis; P. tenera P. yezoensis P. yezoensis P. yezoensis P. yezoensis P. yezoensis P. yezoensis; P. tenera; P. dentata P. yezoensis P. yezoensis P. yezoensis Saccharina japonica S. japonica S. japonica S. japonica S. japonica Symptoms (for sources see Table 2) White to pinkish discoloration and gradual disintegration of thallus. Causes erosion of the pericarp. Tiny black spots become visible on the cortex of the host, followed by the appearance of “goosebumps” as the epiphyte matures. At the end of infection, dark pits are left on the cortical surface, and the host is infected by opportunistic bacteria Bleaching of the thallus at the tips of the plant and close to site of “tietie” attachment to culture ropes, thought to be caused by environmental stress. Subsequent infection by opportunistic bacteria degrades the tissue of the thallus Small, red patches on infected blades. The blade changes color to violetred and numerous holes appear before the blade entirely disintegrates Bleaching of infected blade sections, followed by the appearance of green lesions. Holes form in the blades, and the blades eventually disintegrate “Pinhole-like” white spots on the edge of shell-boring conchocelis, which gradually expand and form lesions A large number of epiphytic diatoms of various species colonize the blade, giving a dirty appearance and causing bleaching Often occurs simultaneously with green-spot disease. Bacteria and cyanobacteria attach to the cuticle in large numbers, causing it to degenerate. A distinctive “Bristle” appears on the surface at the edge of the lesion. With Pseudomonas sp., Vibrio sp: formation of lesions with green borders; The blade rots, and holes are formed. With Flavobacterium sp. LAD-1: Pinhole lesions form in the center of the thallus, which gradually widen. The thallus eventually becomes detached from the culture bed. Similar to Anaaki disease: green chains of fused dead cells develop on wounds of the thallus, followed by rows of pink cells and central green cells around the developing lesion. Bleaching of the blade, followed by cell lysis and blade disintegration The appearance of tiny “reddish-brown” spots on conchocelis life stages grown on scallop shells. The diseased area eventually turns yellowishwhite Blooms of diatoms deplete nutrients in the water column, resulting in bleaching of Pyropia blades Swelling of gametophyte cells, followed by filamentous fading and decaying of the thallus Alginase-secreting bacteria decompose host cell walls, causing rotting and forming holes in the blade Malformation of various life stages, including gametophytes, sporelings, and eggs inside the oogonium, thought to be caused by saprophytic bacteria and poor culturing practices Fronds appear twisted, with swollen stipes and shortened holdfasts The stipes of sporelings become greenish, soft, and decayed and fall from nursery ropes (Continues) WARD ET AL. 823 T A B L E 3 (Continued) Disease name White rot disease Host S. japonica Blister disease S. japonica Shot hole disease Undaria pinnatifida Green-spot rot U. pinnatifida Yellow hole disease U. pinnatifida Spot decay U. pinnatifida Pin-hole disease U. pinnatifida Unnamed disease U. pinnatifida Brown endophytic algae U. pinnatifida Symptoms (for sources see Table 2) Starting from the apex and spreading toward the lower part of the blade, fronds fade in color from brown to yellowish to white. Eventually, fronds decay and detach from culture ropes Blisters form across the fronds. Disruption of these blisters results in decaying of the blade Brown spots appear in the middle of the thallus blade. These spots fuse and spread the pinnate part of the blade. Green spots form on the blade and start to rot, resulting in small holes with green margins. These enlarge, and the frond decays. Bacteria enter the thallus through abrasions and digest cells, forming holes Formation of discolored spots on the thallus, followed by decaying of host tissue. Copepods damage the surface of the frond, causing small, pinhole-like lesions Amphipods burrow through the holdfast of the blade, which may result in longitudinal separation of the frond. Heavily damaged blades can detach from the substrate. Epiphytized thalli become thicker and stiffer and so are less economically valuable The current technique for decreasing the impact of pest epiphytes on eucheumatoid stocks is to monitor cultivated populations and remove the pests by hand as quickly as possible before they can reproduce and spread (Ask & Azanza, 2002; Pang et al., 2015). The removed material is then taken to land and disposed of. Plants infested with EFA are harvested immediately and replaced with uninfected propagules from a separate location (Ask & Azanza, 2002). The development of ice–ice symptoms in Kappaphycus and Eucheuma is thought to be the result of stress to the host from abiotic conditions, such as temperature and salinity (Vairappan et al., 2008) and light intensity and water movement (Hurtado & Critchley, 2006a) in combination with the action of opportunistic bacteria (Largo et al., 1995; Uyenco et al., 1981). The triggers behind disease onset and progression are not well understood, and as a result, no effective management protocols that are cost effective have been developed to date. The improvement of disease mitigation strategies in macroalgal aquaculture is reliant on increasing our understanding of the agents and abiotic factors influencing disease onset and progression and the subsequent development of biosecurity programs, including the use of quarantine procedures and improved farm management practices through capacity building (Campbell et al., 2019). 5 | FUTURE DIRECTIONS FOR SEAWEED AQUACULTURE The continued and sustainable expansion of seaweed aquaculture is reliant on a number of factors. Perhaps the most pressing is the need for a greater understanding of the causes of pathogenic and physiological disease. Improvement in methodologies for the characterization of pathogens, such as the application of histopathological and molecular diagnostic techniques already routinely used in other aquaculture sectors, will lead to the development of rapid and robust diagnostic techniques. These in turn will allow for the early detection of pathogen (and pest) outbreaks and, 824 WARD ET AL. when paired with disease surveillance programs and the monitoring of environmental conditions, will lead to a greater understanding of the abiotic and biotic factors influencing disease and pest outbreaks. Several diseases affecting cultured algal species are known to be caused or exacerbated by abiotic stress as a result of unfavorable environmental conditions, particularly increased water temperature, light, and changes in water salinity (Arasamuthu & Patterson Edwards, 2018). As sea water temperatures continue to rise, as a result of climate change, such incidents may be expected to become more frequent and severe. Therefore, it is important to adapt farm management, such as culturing red algae in deeper water to reduce the impact of too much sun and potentially reduce the growth of epiphytes that may be optimum in higher light conditions, and to ensure biosecurity practices. It is also important to gain a greater understanding of the association between these abiotic factors and opportunistic pathogens, such as the role of bacteria in the development of ice–ice disease in Kappaphycus and Eucheuma. The microbial community associated with seaweeds is also known to have an important role in both their normal development and in disease (Egan et al., 2013). The composition of these pathobiotic communities and the factors influencing unfavorable shifts in community structure, however, remain largely unexplored (Bass et al., 2019). Marine viruses are c. 10 times more abundant in marine environments than both bacteria and archaea (Fuhrman, 1999; Middelboe & Brussard, 2017) and are known to be drivers of both mortality and microbial community structure. Their role in health and disease is poorly understood, but evidence from the wild suggests that viruses will be an agent of diseases in cultivation (McKeown et al., 2017). However, improved surveillance and detection methods, particularly using unbiased molecular methods such as metagenomics on infected seaweed tissues will facilitate the discovery and characterization of novel viruses and lead to a greater understanding of their influence on seaweed aquaculture. In addition to improving our understanding of disease-causing agents, it is important to also consider the role of the host in disease and pest susceptibility. The domestication of seaweeds has, in many cases, led to a reduction of the genetic diversity of seaweed crops, which in turn may result in an increased susceptibility to pathogenic and physiological disease (Valero et al., 2017). A greater understanding of the genetic diversity of cultured seaweeds and appropriate breeding strategies and crop selection are required to retain this genetic diversity and safeguard the disease and pest resistance cultivars for future use by the industry. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We are grateful for funding from UKRI for the GlobalSeaweedSTAR project (BB/P027806/1). ORCID Georgia M. Ward https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9654-1228 Juliet Brodie https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7622-2564 REFERENCES Akiyama, K. (1977). Preliminary report on Streblonema disease in Undaria. Bulletin of Tohoku Regional Fisheries Research Laboratory, 37, 39–41. Arasaki, S. (1947). Studies on the wasting disease of the cultured lavers (Porphyra tenera). 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