Environmental reservoirs and mechanisms of persistence of Vibrio cholerae

Abstract

It is now well accepted that Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of the water-borne disease cholera, is acquired from environmental sources where it persists between outbreaks of the disease. Recent advances in molecular technology have demonstrated that this bacterium can be detected in areas where it has not previously been isolated, indicating a much broader, global distribution of this bacterium outside of endemic regions. The environmental persistence of V. cholerae in the aquatic environment can be attributed to multiple intra- and interspecific strategies such as responsive gene regulation and biofilm formation on biotic and abiotic surfaces, as well as interactions with a multitude of other organisms. This review will discuss some of the mechanisms that enable the persistence of this bacterium in the environment. In particular, we will discuss how V. cholerae can survive stressors such as starvation, temperature, and salinity fluctuations as well as how the organism persists under constant predation by heterotrophic protists.

Escherichia coli Common Pilus (ECP) Targets Arabinosyl Residues in Plant Cell Walls to Mediate Adhesion to Fresh Produce Plants

“…The ability of mammalian pathogenic bacteria to target an intermediate host for survival and transmission is not without precedent: the spread of Vibrio cholerae, a well known human pathogen, through freshwater and marine environments (72,73) is dependent on its interaction with chitin polysaccharide in zooplankton (74,75). Furthermore, pathogenic strains of V. cholerae show increased fitness in bivalves compared with environmental isolates (76).…”

Microbial Surface Colonization and Biofilm Development in Marine Environments

“…Chitin is highly insoluble, but its degradation products represent an abundant source of carbon, nitrogen, and metabolic energy for microbial communities. Chitin utilization constitutes a key pathway in global carbon and nitrogen cycling (186,193), and this polymer also provides a surface for vibrios to colonize, particularly under adverse environmental conditions (516)(517)(518)(519)(520).…”

Regulation of Bacterial Virulence by Csr (Rsm) Systems

“…cholerae primarily inhabits aquatic environments and causes the human disease known as cholera (290). Virulent serogroups of V. cholerae form robust biofilms and express the virulence factors cholera toxin (CT) and the toxin-coregulated pilus (TCP) (290,291).…”

“…cholerae primarily inhabits aquatic environments and causes the human disease known as cholera (290). Virulent serogroups of V. cholerae form robust biofilms and express the virulence factors cholera toxin (CT) and the toxin-coregulated pilus (TCP) (290,291). The maturation and dispersal of V. cholerae biofilms, as well as the production of CT and TCP, are controlled by multiple independent quorum-sensing systems, whose effects converge on a single regulatory circuit (Fig.…”