L-Ascorbic acid restrictsVibrio choleraesurvival in various growth conditions

Abstract

Cholera, a deadly diarrheal disease, continues to ravage various parts of the world. It is caused by Vibrio cholerae, an important member of gamma-proteobacteria. Based on certain genetic and phenotypic tests, the organism is classified in two major biotypes namely classical and El Tor. The El Tor and its variants are majorly responsible for ongoing seventh pandemic across the globe. Previously, we have shown that cross feeding of glucose metabolic acidic by products of gut commensal can severely affect viability of the biotypes. In this work, we examined the effect of L-ascorbic acid on the survival of Vibrio cholerae strains belonging to both biotypes and different serotypes. We observed L-ascorbic acid is effective in restricting the growth of all strains under various conditions.