AI Article Synopsis

  • Many Gram-negative pathogens in aquaculture and agriculture use quorum-sensing (QS) via N-acylhomoserine (AHL) molecules to regulate virulence factors, and quorum quenching (QQ) is proposed as a strategy to interfere with this mechanism.
  • This study examined 827 strains of bacteria from anemones and holothurians, identifying four strains of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia capable of degrading various AHLs; strain M9-54-2 exhibited the most significant degradation activity.
  • Experiments showed that strain M9-54-2 effectively reduced AHL levels and consequent pathogenic activities, supporting the potential of marine organisms in developing QQ enzymes for infection control in aquaculture and agriculture.

Article Abstract

Many Gram-negative aquacultural and agricultural pathogens control virulence factor expression through a quorum-sensing (QS) mechanism involving the production of N-acylhomoserine (AHL) signalling molecules. Thus, the interruption of QS systems by the enzymatic degradation of signalling molecules, known as quorum quenching (QQ), has been proposed as a novel strategy to combat these infections. Given that the symbiotic bacteria of marine invertebrates are considered to be an important source of new bioactive molecules, this study explores the presence of AHL-degrading bacteria among 827 strains previously isolated from the microbiota of anemones and holothurians. Four of these strains (M3-1, M1-14, M3-13 and M9-54-2), belonging to the species Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, were selected on the basis of their ability to degrade a broad range of AHLs, and the enzymes involved in their activity were identified. Strain M9-54-2, which showed the strongest AHL-degrading activity, was selected for further study. High-performance liquid chromatography-mass-spectrometry confirmed that the QQ enzyme is not a lactonase. Strain M9-54-2 degraded AHL accumulation and reduced the production of enzymatic activity in Pectobacterium carotovorum CECT 225 and Vibrio coralliilyticus VibC-Oc-193 in in vitro co-cultivation experiments. The effect of AHL inactivation was confirmed by a reduction in potato tuber maceration and brine shrimp (Artemia salina) mortality caused by P. carotovorum and Vibrio coralliilyticus, respectively. This study strengthens the evidence of marine organisms as an underexplored and promising source of QQ enzymes, useful to prevent infections in aquaculture and agriculture. To our knowledge, this is the first time that anemones and holothurians have been studied for this purpose.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10126-019-09879-wDOI Listing

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