title: An assay to screen bacterial adhesion to mucus biomolecules.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop an assay for rapid screening of bacterial adhesion to various groups of biomolecules present in fish mucus.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A novel assay was developed for investigation of bacterial adhesion to various groups of mucus biomolecules from fish. Lipid-, protein-, carbohydrate- and nucleic acid-rich constituents of mucus were separated using isopycnic density gradient centrifugation techniques. Separated mucus fractions were assayed for bacterial adhesion using a blotting apparatus. The assay was validated using Vibrio vulnificus and skin mucus from hybrid tilapia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A novel assay was developed for the screening of bacterial adhesion to major groups of mucus biomolecules. Adhesion of V. vulnificus MLT403 positively correlated with lipid- and protein-rich mucus constituents and negatively correlated with carbohydrate-rich mucus constituents.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The assay can be used as an initial approach in a systematic identification of mucus constituent(s) exhibiting the most favourable adhesion properties for bacteria.
authors.affiliation: Department of Natural Sciences, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Princess Anne, MD 21853, USA.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tkachenko
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Da Silva
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hearne
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parveen
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Waguespack
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D001431:Bacteriological Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D002499:Centrifugation, Density Gradient; D009093:Mucus / Q000737:chemistry / Q000382:microbiology*; D017210:Tilapia; D041261:Vibrio vulnificus / Q000502:physiology*