gbpA and chiA genes are not uniformly distributed amongst diverse Vibrio cholerae

Abstract

Members of the bacterial genus Vibrio utilize chitin both as a metabolic substrate and a signal to activate natural competence. Vibrio cholerae is a bacterial enteric pathogen, sub-lineages of which can cause pandemic cholera. However, the chitin metabolic pathway in V. cholerae has been dissected using only a limited number of laboratory strains of this species. Here, we survey the complement of key chitin metabolism genes amongst 195 diverse V. cholerae . We show that the gene encoding GbpA, known to be an important colonization and virulence factor in pandemic isolates, is not ubiquitous amongst V. cholerae . We also identify a putatively novel chitinase, and present experimental evidence in support of its functionality. Our data indicate that the chitin metabolic pathway within V. cholerae is more complex than previously thought, and emphasize the importance of considering genes and functions in the context of a species in its entirety, rather than simply relying on traditional reference strains.

Vibrio cholerae O37: one of the exceptions that prove the rule

“…An obvious gap in our knowledge about V. cholerae O37 is the paucity of genome sequences of bacteria from this lineage. Understanding commonly used reference strains in the context of a species allows researchers to determine whether observations in a laboratory strain explain the species, a subset of the species, or just that strain in general [77,78]. Although some additional Sudanese genomes were published in 2017 [9], we still lack genome sequences for many of the interesting strains that have been discussed.…”

Isolation and identification of Vibrio spp. with potential ability to produce polysaccharide monooxygenase from diseased Penaeus monodon

“…Many studies showed evidence of other Vibrio species causing disease on the surface of chitinaceous animals, for example Vibrio vulnificus colonizes on the surface of shellfish (Froelich & Noble, 2014). Vibrio parahaemolyticus used chitinase to colonize particulate chitin of copepods (Fennell, Blackwell, Thomson, & Dorman, 2021). Vibrio species are proved to metabolize chitin which is a favorite substrate for this group of bacteria.…”