Extracellular and surface-bound biological activities of Vibrio fluvialis, Vibrio furnissii and related species

Abstract

Twenty-seven Vibrio strains were assessed for virulence-associated biological activities, including iron chelation, hydrolases, haemolysis and haemagglutination. All strains hydrolysed DNA, chitin, gelatin and casein, produced siderophores, and lysed red blood cells. All V. fluvialis, V. cholerae and V. mimicus strains exhibited diverse lipolytic activity distinct from more discriminate lipolysis by V. furnissii. V. furnissii manifested fibrin and mucin hydrolysis but no phosphate or esculin hydrolysis, for which V. fluvialis varied. No strains hydrolysed urea, alginate or keratin. V. fluvialis, V. furnissii and V. mimicus strains failed to exhibit the mannose-sensitive haemagglutination typical of V. cholerae. Some activities may distinguish otherwise phenotypically similar species. Species tested commonly possessed biological activities that may contribute to virulence, although there was no apparent correlation with isolation from human sources.

Case Report: Vibrio Furnissii isolated from a case of acute gastroenteritis in China

“…V. furnissii culture supernatants lyse erythrocytes, and their lethal effects on epithelial cells are a remarkable feature of pathogenesis [11]. In addition to haemagglutinins and other hydrolytic exoenzymes, hemolysin is also responsible for pathogenesis [12][13][14][15][16]. A functional role of phosphomannomutase in the virulence of V. furnissii was reported [17].…”

First isolation of Vibrio furnissii (emerging Vibrio) from mussels (Mediterranean mussel and bearded mussel) in Turkey

“…furnissii unlike V. cholerae, V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus is not a lethal human pathogen (7). Still, V. furnissii is classified as an "emerging vibrio" (16,17,21), which can be pathogenic for humans and has been implicated in occasional outbreaks of acute gastroenteritis in which mortalities have been reported (9,10,25,34). Recent studies have shown that V. furnisii, as a result of climate change, is a potential threat especially to people living in developing tropical coastal areas (21).…”