So-called 'cleaner fish', including various wrasse (Labridae) species, have become increasingly popular in Norwegian salmon farming in recent years for biocontrol of the salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis.
Thereafter, they developed skin barrier disruptions over time, which caused lethality soon after birth. Experiments using inducible Ahed deletion in vivo and in vitro revealed that an Ahed deficiency led to keratinocyte apoptosis, impaired…