Bioluminescent bacteria: lux genes as environmental biosensors

Nunes-Halldorson, Vânia da Silva; Duran, Norma Letícia

doi:10.1590/s1517-83822003000200001

Cited by 41 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…These organisms may be used for environmental monitoring (286,288,401), as well as to produce N-acyl homoserine lactone autoinducer molecules for controlling infections and biofilm formation (373). Vibrios are also used in vaccine (207) and probiotic (411) production.…”

Section: Perspectives and Exploitationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity of Vibrios

Thompson

Iida

Swings

2004

Microbiol Mol Biol Rev

1,038

863

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Vibrios are ubiquitous and abundant in the aquatic environment. A high abundance of vibrios is also detected in tissues and/or organs of various marine algae and animals, e.g., abalones, bivalves, corals, fish, shrimp, sponges, squid, and zooplankton. Vibrios harbour a wealth of diverse genomes as revealed by different genomic techniques including amplified fragment length polymorphism, multilocus sequence typing, repetetive extragenic palindrome PCR, ribotyping, and whole-genome sequencing. The 74 species of this group are distributed among four different families, i.e., Enterovibrionaceae, Photobacteriaceae, Salinivibrionaceae, and Vibrionaceae. Two new genera, i.e., Enterovibrio norvegicus and Grimontia hollisae, and 20 novel species, i.e., Enterovibrio coralii, Photobacterium eurosenbergii, V. brasiliensis, V. chagasii, V. coralliillyticus, V. crassostreae, V. fortis, V. gallicus, V. hepatarius, V. hispanicus, V. kanaloaei, V. neonatus, V. neptunius, V. pomeroyi, V. pacinii, V. rotiferianus, V. superstes, V. tasmaniensis, V. ezurae, and V. xuii, have been described in the last few years. Comparative genome analyses have already revealed a variety of genomic events, including mutations, chromosomal rearrangements, loss of genes by decay or deletion, and gene acquisitions through duplication or horizontal transfer (e.g., in the acquisition of bacteriophages, pathogenicity islands, and super-integrons), that are probably important driving forces in the evolution and speciation of vibrios. Whole-genome sequencing and comparative genomics through the application of, e.g., microarrays will facilitate the investigation of the gene repertoire at the species level. Based on such new genomic information, the taxonomy and the species concept for vibrios will be reviewed in the next years

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Section: Perspectives and Exploitationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity of Vibrios

Thompson

Iida

Swings

2004

Microbiol Mol Biol Rev

1,038

863

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“…However, production of bioluminescent light is likely to be less than 100% efficient. It has been suggested that 6 molecules of ATP are required to generate a bioluminescent photon (Hastings & Nealson 1981, Nunes-Halldorson & Duran 2003. If 80 000 J are required to form 1 mol of ATP (Alexander 1999), this suggests that production of a bioluminescent photon costs 8 × 10 -19 J.…”

Section: A Model Of Flash Frequencymentioning

confidence: 99%

Combining motility and bioluminescent signalling aids mate finding in deep-sea fish: a simulation study

Ruxton¹,

Bailey²

2005

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…Traditional water quality monitoring programs employ chemical testing, which can be costly in time and expense ( 2 , 3 ) . Bioluminescent bacteria, such as Photobacterium phosphoreum , Aliivibrio fischeri , and P. harveyi , possess the lux gene, which permits them to emit light in response to an environmental stimulus in an active process involving the enzyme luciferase and the electron transport chain ( 3 , 4 ) . Due to bioluminescence energy requirements via the lux gene, a reduction in light emissions can indicate that cells are biochemically compromised, stressed, or dead.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Careful selection of unicellular organisms combined with genetic engineering and recombinant DNA techniques have allowed researchers to develop assays to determine which pollutants are present and in what concentrations ( 5 ) . These tests are commercially available today, and there is a movement to continue validating these tests and use them for regulatory monitoring in addition to chemical testing ( 2 , 3 ) . …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student-Centered Microbioassay Laboratory Activity Utilizing Bioluminescent Bacteria

Younkin

Romano

2018

J Microbiol Biol Educ.

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Student-centered teaching allows students to be actively engaged in hands-on, minds-on activities that emphasize creativity and collaboration, enabling them to ask questions and design their own investigations to real-world problems. One such problem is water contamination, which causes human health and environmental issues. However, chemical water quality testing for pollutants can be timely and expensive. In addition to chemical testing, researchers have developed assays using unicellular organisms to determine which pollutants are present and in what concentrations. In this three-hour laboratory activity, high school students and undergraduate biology or microbiology students work in pairs to help a fictional company develop a water quality microbioassay. Students design their own laboratory protocols to test the reaction of a bioluminescent bacterial species (i.e., Photobacterium phosphoreum or Aliivibrio fischeri ) to exposure of common aquatic pollutants such as fertilizer, household cleaners, and motor oil. During this laboratory activity, students apply previously learned components of experimental design, including positive and negative controls, constants, and experimental groups. In addition, students gain experience writing a scientific explanation for a recommendation regarding the bioluminescent bacteria’s suitability in a bioassay. Pre- and post-evaluation data revealed that students were successful in achieving the activity’s objectives as well as in designing their investigations and writing their protocols using scaffolds within the lesson.

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Bioluminescent bacteria: lux genes as environmental biosensors

Cited by 41 publications

References 63 publications

Biodiversity of Vibrios

Biodiversity of Vibrios

Combining motility and bioluminescent signalling aids mate finding in deep-sea fish: a simulation study

Student-Centered Microbioassay Laboratory Activity Utilizing Bioluminescent Bacteria

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