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Diseases of Aquatic Organisms

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DAO 86:21-28 (2009)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/dao02091

Investigation of several virulence properties among Vibrio alginolyticus strains isolated from diseased cultured fish in Tunisia

Amel Ben Kahla-Nakbi1,2,*, Kamel Chaieb2, Amina Bakhrouf2

1Institut National des Sciences et de Technologie de la Mer (Annexe Monastir), BP 59, 5000 Monastir, Tunisia
2Laboratoire d’Analyse Traitement et Valorisation des Polluants de l’Environnement et des Produits, Faculté de Pharmacie de Monastir, Rue Avicenne, 5000 Monastir, Tunisia

ABSTRACT: We analysed 34 Vibrio alginolyticus strains isolated from gilthead sea bream Sparus aurata L. and sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax L. cultured in fish farms on the Tunisian Mediterranean coast for the presence of several virulence properties such as extracellular products (ECP) production, growth in iron-limiting conditions and survival in fish serum. The results obtained with different substrates showed that ECP of V. alginolyticus were hydrolytic. The virulence was correlated with the ability of strains to grow in the presence of non-immune fish serum or under conditions of iron limitation. We further examined the presence of virulence genes homologous to those in V. cholerae (toxR, toxS, VPI and ace); toxR was found in 16 V. alginolyticus strains and toxS in 17 strains out of 34 analysed. A positive amplification for the virulence pathogenicity island (VPI) was produced by 12 V. alginolyticus strains. Finally, the ace expected amplification fragment was found in 7 V. alginolyticus isolates. Thus, the pathogenicity of V. alginolyticus may be the result of a combination of all these factors.


KEY WORDS: Vibrio alginolyticus · Virulence genes · ECP production · Bacterial survival · Fish serum · Dicentrarchus labrax · Sparus aurata


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Cite this article as: Ben Kahla-Nakbi A, Chaieb K, Bakhrouf A (2009) Investigation of several virulence properties among Vibrio alginolyticus strains isolated from diseased cultured fish in Tunisia. Dis Aquat Org 86:21-28. https://doi.org/10.3354/dao02091

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