Vibrio fluvialis: an emerging human pathogen

Thandavarayan Ramamurthy,Sumio Shinoda,Gururaja P Pazhani,Goutam Chowdhury

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2014.00091

Thandavarayan Ramamurthy, Sumio Shinoda + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2014.00091

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Abstract

Vibrio fluvialis is a pathogen commonly found in coastal environs. Considering recent increase in numbers of diarrheal outbreaks and sporadic extraintestinal cases, V. fluvialis has been considered as an emerging pathogen. Though this pathogen can be easily isolated by existing culture methods, its identification is still a challenging problem due to close phenotypic resemblance either with Vibrio cholerae or Aeromonas spp. However, using molecular tools, it is easy to identify V. fluvialis from clinical and different environmental samples. Many putative virulence factors have been reported, but its mechanisms of pathogenesis and survival fitness in the environment are yet to be explored. This chapter covers some of the major discoveries that have been made to understand the importance of V. fluvialis.

Highlights

Vibrio fluvialis is a halophilic Gram-negative bacterium, which has a curved cell morphology and polar flagella for motility
V. alginolyticus, V. cholerae, V. costicola, V. mimicus, V. cincinnatiensis, V. hollisae, V. furnissii, V. parahaemolyticus, V. vulnificus, V. carchariae and V. metschnikovii are clinically important as they cause different types of vibriosis
The toxigenic V. cholerae, V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus are associated with well-known cholera and diarrhea and extraintestinal infections, respectively

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Vibrio fluvialis is a halophilic Gram-negative bacterium, which has a curved cell morphology and polar flagella for motility. V. alginolyticus, V. cholerae, V. costicola, V. mimicus, V. cincinnatiensis, V. hollisae, V. furnissii, V. parahaemolyticus, V. vulnificus, V. carchariae (a junior synonym of V. harveyi) and V. metschnikovii are clinically important as they cause different types of vibriosis. After preliminary screening in the TCBS, a battery of biochemical testes is essential for the species-specific identification of V. fluvialis Minimal biochemical tests such as lysine decarboxylase, ornithine decarboxylase, arginine dihydrolase, and L-arabinose are mandatory for the identification of V. fluvialis. In most resource-poor countries, these tests are not methodically performed, which may lead to labeling of V. fluvialis as V. cholerae Considering such situation, there is a high possibility that the V. fluvialis could be reported as V. cholerae non-O1, non-O139 or non-agglutinable vibrios (NAGs). V. fluvialis, V. furnissii, and V. mimicus are distinctive from V. cholerae, as the later exhibit strong mannosesensitive hemagglutination These test results may have a strong influence in the confirmation of strains

Emerging Vibrio fluvialis

Findings

CONCLUSION