Vibrio

Vibrio is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria with a curved rod (comma) shape. Several species are capable of causing foodborne infection, which is typically associated with eating raw seafood. Vibrio species are typically found in salt water and are facultative anaerobes that test positive for oxidase but do not produce spores. The entire genus is motile. They can have sheathed or unsheathed polar or lateral flagellum. Typically, Vibrio species have two chromosomes, which is unusual for bacteria. Each chromosome has a distinct and independent replication origin and is conserved in the genus over time. Recent phylogenies have been built using a collection of genes (multilocus sequence analysis).

Müller (1773, 1786) described eight species of Vibrio (which is now included in Infusoria), three of which were spirilliforms. Several additional species are now classified as eukaryotic taxa, for example, the euglenoid Peranema or the diatom Bacillaria. However, Vibrio Müller, 1773 became the name of a zoological genus, while Vibrio Pacini, 1854 became the name of the bacterial genus. In 1854, Filippo Pacini isolated microorganisms dubbed “vibrions” from cholera patients. “vibrio” means “to quiver” in Latin.

Vibrio spp. is a bacterium that is frequently found in marine environments. Marine Vibrio species are extremely salt tolerant and are capable of growing in a wide range of salinities. S.I. Paul et al. (2021) isolated, characterised, and identified multiple Vibrio species. Vibrio natriegens, Vibrio pelagius, and Vibrio azureus) from marine sponges in the Bay of Bengal’s Saint Martin’s Island Area. Vibrio species were found to be the most prevalent bacteria in marine environments.

Pathogenic Strains

Numerous Vibrio species are pathogens. While the majority of bacteria that cause disease are connected with gastroenteritis, they can also infect exposed wounds and cause sepsis. They are transmitted by a variety of marine species, including crabs and prawns, and have been known to cause deadly infections in humans when exposed. Certain risk factors, such as uncontrolled diabetes, increased iron levels (cirrhosis, sickle cell disease, hemochromatosis), and cancer or other immunocompromised states, enhance the risk of clinical disease and death. Vibrio species that are pathogenic include Vibrio cholerae (the causative agent of cholera), Vibrio parahaemolyticus, and Vibrio vulnificus. Generally, V. cholerae is transmitted through contaminated water. Vibrio pathogenic species can cause foodborne illness (infection), which is typically connected with eating raw seafood. When Vibrio bacteria are consumed, they can cause watery diarrhoea as well as various secondary symptoms. The pathogenic characteristics are associated with quorum sensing, a process through which bacteria can express their virulence factor via their signalling molecules.

Epidemics of V. vulnificus are prevalent in warm areas, and minor, generally lethal outbreaks occur on a regular basis. Following Hurricane Katrina, an outbreak erupted in New Orleans, and many lethal cases occur each year in Florida. Vibrio infections as a whole were up 43% in the United States in 2013 when compared to the rates recorded in 2006–2008. V. vulnificus, the most dangerous strain, has remained stable. Vibrio infections transmitted through food are most frequently connected with raw seafood consumption.

V. parahaemolyticus is also related with the Kanagawa phenomenon, which occurs when strains recovered from human hosts (clinical isolates) are hemolytic on blood agar plates but are not hemolytic when isolated from nonhuman sources.

Numerous Vibrio species are also pathogenic to animals. They are known to cause disease in fish and shellfish and are a leading source of death in domestic marine life.

Treatment

Vibrio gastroenteritis

Due to the fact that Vibrio gastroenteritis is self-limiting in the majority of patients, no specific medical treatment is necessary. If a patient is unable to tolerate oral fluid replacement, intravenous fluid therapy may be required.

While the majority of Vibrio species are susceptible to medicines such as doxycycline or quinolones, antibiotic therapy has been shown to have no effect on the duration of the illness or pathogen excretion. If the patient is unwell, has a high temperature, or has an underlying medical problem, oral antibiotic therapy with doxycycline or a quinolone may be initiated.

Non Cholera Vibrio infections

Patients with a non cholera Vibrio wound infection or sepsis are significantly more unwell and frequently have co-morbidities. Medical treatment entails the following:

• Initiation of effective antibiotic therapy as soon as possible (doxycycline or a quinolone)

• Intensive medical therapy with vigorous fluid replacement and vasopressors is used to treat hypotension and septic shock and to rectify acid-base and electrolyte imbalances that may occur as a result of severe sepsis

• Within 24 hours of the onset of clinical signs, fasciotomy can be life-saving in individuals with necrotizing fasciitis

• Early wound debridement is critical for successful therapy and is especially vital to avoid amputation of fingers, toes, or limbs

• Rapid and serial surgical evaluation and intervention are necessary because patients, particularly those with necrotizing fasciitis or compartment syndrome, can deteriorate fast

• In the healing phase, reconstructive surgery, such as skin grafts, is performed

Vibrio natriegens protein expression

Efficient and novel recombinant protein expression systems have the potential to further reduce the cost of enzyme production. Vibrio natriegens is the fastest growing free-living bacterium, with a doubling time of less than 10 minutes, making it an ideal host for protein expression. 196 pET plasmids encoding various genes of interest (GOIs) were electroporated into the Vibrio natriegens strain VnDX, which already contains an integrated T7 RNA polymerase expression cassette. As a consequence, 65 and 75% of the investigated GOIs expressed in soluble form in V. natriegens and Escherichia coli, respectively, with 20 GOIs expressing more strongly in the former. Additionally, we adapted a consensus “first thing to try” protocol for V. natriegens using Terrific Broth medium. Six GOIs expressing biocatalyst enzymes thus exhibited a catalytic efficiency increase of 50–128 percent under optimum expression conditions. Our study established V. natriegens as a pET-compatible expression host with a spectrum of highly expressed GOIs distinct from that of E. coli and an easy-to-use consensus process, thereby resolving the issue of some GOIs being inefficiently expressed in E. coli.

Conclusion

vibrio, any of a genus of comma – shaped bacteria in the Vibrionaceae family. Vibrios are aquatic germs that cause significant sickness in humans & other animals.

Muller described the eight species of Vibrio, three out  of them were spirilliforms.

Many Vibrio species are likewise harmful to animals. They are known to infect fish and shellfish and are a major cause of death in domestic marine life.