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Virulence of luminescent and non‐luminescent isogenic vibrios towards gnotobiotic Artemia franciscana larvae and specific pathogen‐free Litopenaeus vannamei shrimp
Author(s) -
Phuoc L.H.,
Defoirdt T.,
Sorgeloos P.,
Bossier P.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of applied microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2672
pISSN - 1364-5072
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2672.2008.04107.x
Subject(s) - shrimp , aquaculture , biology , fishery , zoology , library science , fish <actinopterygii> , computer science
Aims: This study was conducted to test the virulence of luminescent (L) and non‐luminescent (NL) isogenic strains of Vibrio campbellii LMG21363, Vibrio harveyi BB120 (wild type) and quorum‐sensing mutant strains derived from the wild type such as Vibrio harveyi BB152, BB170, MM30 and BB886. Methods and Results: The NL strains could be obtained by culturing rifampicin‐resistant luminescent strains in the dark under static condition. The virulence of the L and NL strains was tested in gnotobiotic Artemia franciscana larvae challenged with 10 4 CFU ml −1 of bacteria. All luminescent isogenic tested strains showed higher virulence compared to the NL strains. The virulence of L and NL V. campbellii and V. harveyi BB120 was also tested in specific pathogen‐free juvenile shrimp upon intramuscular injection with 10 6 CFU of bacteria. In contrast with Artemia , there was no significant difference in mortality between the groups challenged with L and NL strains ( P > 0·05). The non‐luminescent strains were not able to revert back to the luminescent state and quorum sensing did not influence this phenotypic shift. Conclusions: Luminescent Vibrio strains can switch to a non‐luminescent state by culturing them in static conditions. The NL strains become less virulent as verified in Artemia . Significance and Impact of the Study: The luminescent state of Vibrio cells in a culture needs to be verified in order to assure maintenance of virulence.