title: Screening of Vibrio isolates to develop an experimental infection model in the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas.
abstract: In an attempt to develop a reproducible experimental model of bacterial infection in Crassostrea gigas, oysters taken from very localised sub-populations suffering natural mortality outbreaks were used in cohabitation trials under laboratory conditions. From these trials, a collection of Vibrio strains was isolated from moribund and healthy oysters. In a second step, strains were experimentally tested for virulence by means of injection into healthy oysters. This screening revealed a span of virulence among isolated strains from none to medium. When pooling injected strains, results suggest increased virulence. Vibrio strains may have additive/synergistic action leading to higher C. gigas mortality rates in experimental challenges. Although the study initially aimed to develop a simple experimental model, a complex of interactions emerged between several bacterial strains during the pathogenic process in their molluscan host. Selected strains provide a suitable model of experimental disease for further studies and better understanding of bacterial interaction and pathogenesis in C. gigas.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Génétique et Pathologie, Institut français de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer (IFREMER), 17390 La Tremblade, France.
authors.forename: Mélanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gay
authors.forename: Franck C J
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Berthe
authors.forename: Frédérique
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Le Roux
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D005602:France; D005838:Genotype; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010125:Ostreidae / Q000382:microbiology*; D010802:Phylogeny; D012623:Seawater; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014733:Vibrio / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D014774:Virulence