Current Treatment Strategies for Brown Jelly Disease
I’ve been asked to summarize the current findings concerning Brown Jelly Disease for those that need a quick reference if they encounter it in their own tank. For a link to current tests investigating possible treatments, see here.
First, if you suspect one of your corals is infected with brown jelly disease, act quickly! Heads of certain corals, mainly euphyllia can be killed within hours. Remove the affected coral immediately – don’t wait for a positive ID. Remember: TIME IS CORAL.
For some examples of brown jelly disease, see Examples 1, 2, 3, 4.
As the jelly can spread to other corals, turn off all pumps immediately before removing the affected coral(s). I find it helpful if you place a large ziplock bag or Tupperware container directly under the affected coral. Gently remove the coral from the rock work and place in the container - ensure you zip it up/cover with a lid. This allows you to remove the affected coral without contaminating the other corals as you raise the container out of the water. Ensure nearby corals are not affected before turning the pumps back on.
Examine the coral under bright light. I find it helpful to use a small clean pippete or syringe to spray each head of the affected coral. If any “jelly” giggles or blows off, consider that head infected. If any of the heads have already lost any flesh, consider that head infected. If any heads are infected with brown jelly disease, frag those immediately- it is advisable to be liberal in your fragging – too much is a better than too few.
Once the healthy coral has been thoroughly appraised, you have two options at this point. Ideally, place in a QT tank and observe for further signs of brown jelly disease. If this option is not available, wash vigorously in a separate container of tank water to remove any traces of the brown jelly from the previously infected coral. *Remember, any tools used during this process including turkey basters or syringes should be sanitized before use in the display tank*. Once thoroughly rinsed, the specimen can be placed back in the display tank. I advise placing close to the front of the glass in a corner “down water” from nearby corals. This allows better viewing for signs of brown jelly disease in the coming days.
The following treatments should not be utilized for healthy specimens. Untreated brown jelly disease is extremely lethal (80-100% mortality from our experiments), so the following treatments, while dangerous, seem to confer a mortality benefit to the affected corals. Understand that infected corals treated with the following procedure still have a relatively high mortality rate (~30%), so utilize at your own discretion. This treatment has only been tested on Duncans, Candy Canes, Euphyllia, and leathers. It is unknown at this time if this is an effective stratedgy with other species.
Monitor the rest of the tank for the next few weeks. Brown Jelly Disease seems to affect corals with reduced host defenses, often as a result of stressors in the tank. Ensure water parameters, lighting, and flow are adequate and investigate any recent changes in chemistry or livestock.
With luck and if you act quickly enough, many of the infected frags may make a full recovery!
Happy Reefing!
*Note: Samples on live corals were carried out with a 1:20 dilution for 4 minutes. An equally effective dip of 1:30 for 5 minutes was observed under the microscope, but is awaiting testing on live specimens*
I’ve been asked to summarize the current findings concerning Brown Jelly Disease for those that need a quick reference if they encounter it in their own tank. For a link to current tests investigating possible treatments, see here.
First, if you suspect one of your corals is infected with brown jelly disease, act quickly! Heads of certain corals, mainly euphyllia can be killed within hours. Remove the affected coral immediately – don’t wait for a positive ID. Remember: TIME IS CORAL.
For some examples of brown jelly disease, see Examples 1, 2, 3, 4.
As the jelly can spread to other corals, turn off all pumps immediately before removing the affected coral(s). I find it helpful if you place a large ziplock bag or Tupperware container directly under the affected coral. Gently remove the coral from the rock work and place in the container - ensure you zip it up/cover with a lid. This allows you to remove the affected coral without contaminating the other corals as you raise the container out of the water. Ensure nearby corals are not affected before turning the pumps back on.
Examine the coral under bright light. I find it helpful to use a small clean pippete or syringe to spray each head of the affected coral. If any “jelly” giggles or blows off, consider that head infected. If any of the heads have already lost any flesh, consider that head infected. If any heads are infected with brown jelly disease, frag those immediately- it is advisable to be liberal in your fragging – too much is a better than too few.
Once the healthy coral has been thoroughly appraised, you have two options at this point. Ideally, place in a QT tank and observe for further signs of brown jelly disease. If this option is not available, wash vigorously in a separate container of tank water to remove any traces of the brown jelly from the previously infected coral. *Remember, any tools used during this process including turkey basters or syringes should be sanitized before use in the display tank*. Once thoroughly rinsed, the specimen can be placed back in the display tank. I advise placing close to the front of the glass in a corner “down water” from nearby corals. This allows better viewing for signs of brown jelly disease in the coming days.
The following treatments should not be utilized for healthy specimens. Untreated brown jelly disease is extremely lethal (80-100% mortality from our experiments), so the following treatments, while dangerous, seem to confer a mortality benefit to the affected corals. Understand that infected corals treated with the following procedure still have a relatively high mortality rate (~30%), so utilize at your own discretion. This treatment has only been tested on Duncans, Candy Canes, Euphyllia, and leathers. It is unknown at this time if this is an effective stratedgy with other species.
- Rinse the infected corals vigorously to remove as much of the jelly as possible. This is best done with a turkey baster. Discard the contaminated water and repeat several times to remove as much “jelly” as possible.
- Prepare a solution of one part hydrogen peroxide (3%) to 20 parts tank water and place the infected specimens in the container (approximately 12mL hydrogen peroxide in 8oz tank water). You should notice bubbles beginning to form on the heads of the coral.
- Set a timer for four minutes
- Gently swish or spray the solution onto the affected corals every minute or so.
- At the end of the four minutes, discard the hydrogen peroxide solution and place the coral in a new container of fresh tank water. Swirl this container to ensure adequate contact between the fresh water and the remaining hydrogen peroxide
- Transfer dipped frags to a QT or place in the tank away from other corals for observation.
Monitor the rest of the tank for the next few weeks. Brown Jelly Disease seems to affect corals with reduced host defenses, often as a result of stressors in the tank. Ensure water parameters, lighting, and flow are adequate and investigate any recent changes in chemistry or livestock.
With luck and if you act quickly enough, many of the infected frags may make a full recovery!
Happy Reefing!
*Note: Samples on live corals were carried out with a 1:20 dilution for 4 minutes. An equally effective dip of 1:30 for 5 minutes was observed under the microscope, but is awaiting testing on live specimens*
