Open AccessAcylhomoserine lactone production and degradation by the fish pathogen Tenacibaculum maritimum , a member of the Cytophaga–Flavobacterium–Bacteroides (CFB) group
Author(s) -
Romero Manuel,
AvendañoHerrera Rubén,
Magariños Beatriz,
Cámara Miguel,
Otero Ana
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2009.01889.x
Subject(s) - cytophaga , flavobacterium , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteroides , pathogen , fish <actinopterygii> , biology , bacteria , pseudomonas , fishery , genetics
Tenacibaculum maritimum (formerly Flexibacter maritimus ) is a filamentous, biofilm‐forming member of the Cytophaga–Flavobacterium–Bacteroides group (or Bacteroidetes ), which causes the widely distributed marine fish disease tenacibaculosis. A search for N ‐acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) quorum‐sensing (QS) signals in the culture media of nine representative strains of this species using different biosensor strains revealed the presence of short‐type AHL activity in all of them. N ‐butyryl‐ l ‐homoserine lactone (C4‐HSL) was identified in T. maritimum NCIMB2154 T by LC‐MS. A degradation activity for long‐acyl AHLs (C10‐HSL) was subsequently demonstrated in T. maritimum NCIMB2154 T . The acidification of the culture medium after degradation did not allow the recovery of C10‐HSL, which indicates a possible acylase‐type degradation activity. Even though the physiological processes under the control of AHL‐mediated QS in T. maritimum need to be further characterized, this discovery extends the paradigm of AHL‐mediated QS signalling beyond the Proteobacteria and reinforces its ecological significance.