This Research Topic brings together 24 articles that highlight the most recent research
findings concerning the biology of the genus Vibrio and covers pathogenicity and host
interaction, genome plasticity and evolution, and the dynamics of factors influencing
the ecology of vibrios.
Vibrio comprises one of the most diverse marine bacterial genera (Gomez-Gil et al.,
2014), and its diversity is emphasized in two of the articles opening this set of
Research Topic papers. Sawabe et al. (2013) present a molecular phylogeny of 86 Vibrio
species based on genome sequencing that provides insight into Vibrio biodiversity
and evolutionary history. In a study of more than 300 Vibrio genome sequences, Lukjancenko
and Ussery (2014) conclude that the Vibrio pan-genome comprises 17,000 gene families,
differentially present and/or expressed in any given species.
A remarkable feature of all Vibrio species is an highly plastic genome, a feature
examined in five papers. The two chromosomes are shaped by horizontal gene transfer
involving, among others, antibiotic resistance, virulence, and niche adaptation (Rowe-Magnus
et al., 2001; Kirkup et al., 2010). V. vulnificus biotype 3 is a notable example.
Efimov et al. (2013) suggest biotype 3 evolved from biotype 1 by acquisition of unique
genes from other bacterial species, such as Shewanella, sharing the same ecological
niche. Carraro et al. (2014) employ molecular and functional characterization of pVCR94,
to identify the role of IncA/C plasmids in antibiotic resistance in a Rwandan V. cholerae
isolate. A retrospective analysis of epidemic V. cholerae in Angola is reported by
Valia et al. (2013), showing unexpected genomic variability among variants, highlighting
the role of genomic islands, phages, and integrative conjugative elements in the genetic
diversity of V. cholerae in a single epidemic. Rivas et al. (2013) describe acquisition
by Photobacterium damselae subsp. damselae of virulence plasmid pPHDD1 that encodes
pore-forming toxins and hemolysins which play a key role in virulence for both fish
and humans. A review by Rapa and Labbate (2013) describes the role of integrons in
Vibrio species for which gene cassettes comprise approximately 1–3% of the entire
genome and are very likely involved in bacterial adaptation and evolution.
Nine of the manuscripts analyze Vibrio pathogenicity, disease development, specificity,
and adaptation in both human and animal hosts. Tan et al. (2014) deciphered the biosynthetic
network of the siderophore vulnibactin, essential in iron uptake from host proteins,
the importance of which in V. vulnificus pathogenicity has been clinically demonstrated.
Inhibition/resistance mechanisms developed by V. salmonicida, the causative agent
of hemorrhagic septicemia in Atlantic salmon, is described by Bjelland et al. (2013),
who show that it overcomes the salmon innate immune system to a point where the infection
overwhelms the host. The role in bacterial virulence of diverse extracellular proteolytic
enzymes secreted by human pathogenic Vibrio species is the focus of a review by Miyoshi
(2013). The engagement of type VI secretion systems by V. cholerae is suggested as
a means of intra- and inter-species predation and nutrient acquisition, inducing rapid
multiplication in the human host (Pukatzki and Provenzano, 2013). The bioluminescent
marine bacterium V. campbellii is used by Wang et al. (2013) to analyze the pyomelanin-pigmented
phenotype, known to provide Vibrio species with greater UV and oxidative stress resistance
and enhanced intestine colonization. The relationship between pathogenicity and motility
in Vibrio species and the contribution of flagella to adhesion and biofilm formation
are discussed by Zhu et al. (2013). The largely unexplored V. fluvialis mechanisms
of pathogenesis, survival and fitness are reviewed by Ramamurthy et al. (2014). Twenty
new Vibrio species associated with molluscans are described and their pathogenic potential
for molluscs elucidated by Romalde et al. (2014). The exquisite bacteria–host interaction
between V. fisheri and its squid host, Euprymna scolopes, is described in detail,
as are the molecular pathways of biofilm formation, motility, and chemotaxis (Norsworthy
and Visick, 2013).
The capacity of Vibrio species to persist in the aquatic environment, their ecology
and association with abiotic and biotic factors, as well as environmental surveillance
for public health (Lipp et al., 2002; Grimes et al., 2009; Johnson, 2013) comprise
a section in the Research Topic that opens with a review by Lutz et al. (2013) elucidating
complex mechanisms enabling V. cholerae to withstand starvation, temperature fluctuation,
salinity variation, and predation. Haley et al. (2014) report water temperature increase
can be correlated with rise of a diverse population of V. parahaemolyticus, some of
which carry pandemic markers, in water and plankton along the Georgian coast of the
Black Sea. V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus populations associated with oyster,
sediment, and surface water related to a hurricane event in the Chesapeake Bay are
concluded to be influenced by wave energy and sediment resuspension (Shaw et al.,
2014). Canesi et al. (2013) show the serum of Mytilus galloprovincialis promotes phagocytosis
and killing by hemocytes of both V. cholerae O1 and non-O1/non-O139 in edible bivalves.
Chakraborty et al. (2013) evaluate a sensitive and specific dipstick test to detect
toxigenic V. cholerae in water, validating a simple, inexpensive method for use in
areas at risk of cholera.
Three articles addressing Vibrio environmental diversity and dynamics complete this
Research Topic. Mansergh and Zehr (2014) suggest that the natural shift of Vibrio
populations in Monterey Bay is affected by larger oceanographic conditions (flow velocities
and wind patterns), rather than individual environmental factors. Meta-analysis of
environmental variables and Vibrio association with plants, algae, zooplankton, and
animals are reviewed by Takemura et al. (2014). As a final point concerning environmental
distribution, Constantin De Magny et al. (2014) propose temporal shifts, zooplankton
community variability, and occurrence of V. cholerae in the aquatic environment are
related to cholera dynamics. These factors, analyzed by metagenomics, permit greater
understanding of community structure, function, and competition.
In summary, the collection of manuscripts provided in this Research Topic offers a
comprehensive exploration of Vibrio biology, from the single gene to the bacterial
community, elucidating Vibrio molecular pathways and evolutionary history. This special
issue shows the significant progress achieved in understanding the complex biology
of the genus Vibrio and should both stimulate discussion and offer a challenge to
researchers in microbial ecology and evolution.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial
or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.