Guilin Wang , Liang Chen , Rudi Mai

Tropical Marine Fisheries Research Center, Hainan Institute of Tropical Agricultural Resources, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China
Author    Correspondence author
International Journal of Marine Science, 2026, Vol. 16, No. 1   
Received: 08 Jan., 2026    Accepted: 15 Feb., 2026    Published: 27 Feb., 2026

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Oyster aquaculture is an important component of global marine fisheries, yet disease outbreaks have become a major constraint on its sustainable development. This paper systematically analyzes the characteristics of disease occurrence in oyster farming by integrating biological susceptibility, pathogen diversity, environmental drivers, transmission pathways, host immune responses, and epidemiological patterns. The results indicate that oysters are highly vulnerable to pathogenic infections due to their filter-feeding behavior and limited adaptive immune capacity. Bacterial diseases, particularly those caused by Vibrio species, are the most frequently reported, followed by viral, parasitic, and fungal infections. Environmental stressors such as elevated water temperature, salinity fluctuation, dissolved oxygen depletion, and eutrophication significantly increase disease incidence by weakening host immunity and promoting pathogen proliferation. High stocking density further accelerates disease transmission through waterborne pathways and aquaculture facility-mediated spread. In addition, microbial community dysbiosis plays a critical role in disease development and progression. A case study of intensive farming systems demonstrates that poor environmental management and inadequate biosecurity measures can lead to rapid disease outbreaks and substantial economic losses. Based on these findings, integrated disease management strategies combining ecological regulation, pathogen monitoring, and improved farming practices are proposed to enhance disease prevention and control in oyster aquaculture.

Oyster aquaculture; Disease occurrence; Pathogen dynamics; Environmental stress; Disease management