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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, January 2009, p. 135-146, Vol. 75, No. 1
0099-2240/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.02894-07
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Diversity and Seasonality of Bioluminescent Vibrio cholerae Populations in Chesapeake Bay{triangledown}

Young-Gun Zo,1,2,{dagger} Nipa Chokesajjawatee,1,3 Christopher Grim,1,2 Eiji Arakawa,4 Haruo Watanabe,4 and Rita R. Colwell1,2*

Center of Marine Biotechnology, University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute, 701 E. Pratt St., Baltimore, Maryland 21202,1 Center of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of Maryland Institute of Advanced Computer Studies, University of Maryland—College Park, College Park, Maryland 20742,2 National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, 113 Phahonyothin Rd., Klong 1, Klong Luang, Pathumthani 12120, Thailand,3 Department of Bacteriology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Toyama 1-23-1, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan4

Received 21 December 2007/ Accepted 6 November 2008

Association of luminescence with phenotypic and genotypic traits and with environmental parameters was determined for 278 strains of Vibrio cholerae isolated from the Chesapeake Bay during 1998 to 2000. Three clusters of luminescent strains (A, B, and C) and two nonluminescent clusters (X and Y) were identified among 180 clonal types. V. cholerae O1 strains isolated during pandemics and endemic cholera in the Ganges Delta were related to cluster Y. Heat-stable enterotoxin (encoded by stn) and the membrane protein associated with bile resistance (encoded by ompU) were found to be linked to luminescence in strains of cluster A. Succession from nonluminescent to luminescent populations of V. cholerae occurred during spring to midsummer. Occurrence of cluster A strains in water with neutral pH was contrasted with that of cluster Y strains in water with a pH of >8. Cluster A was found to be associated with a specific calanoid population cooccurring with cyclopoids. Cluster B was related to cluster Y, with its maximal prevalence at pH 8. Occurrence of cluster B strains was more frequent with warmer water temperatures and negatively correlated with maturity of the copepod community. It is concluded that each cluster of luminescent V. cholerae strains occupies a distinct ecological niche. Since the dynamics of these niche-specific subpopulations are associated with zooplankton community composition, the ecology of luminescent V. cholerae is concluded to be related to its interaction with copepods and related crustacean species.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of Maryland Institute of Advanced Computer Studies, University of Maryland—College Park, College Park, MD 20742. Phone: (301) 405-9550. Fax: (301) 314-6654. E-mail: rcolwell{at}umiacs.umd.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 14 November 2008.

{dagger} Present address: Department of Environmental Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 200-701, Republic of Korea.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, January 2009, p. 135-146, Vol. 75, No. 1
0099-2240/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.02894-07
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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