title: Environmental reservoirs and mechanisms of persistence of Vibrio cholerae.
abstract: It is now well accepted that Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of the water-borne disease cholera, is acquired from environmental sources where it persists between outbreaks of the disease. Recent advances in molecular technology have demonstrated that this bacterium can be detected in areas where it has not previously been isolated, indicating a much broader, global distribution of this bacterium outside of endemic regions. The environmental persistence of V. cholerae in the aquatic environment can be attributed to multiple intra- and interspecific strategies such as responsive gene regulation and biofilm formation on biotic and abiotic surfaces, as well as interactions with a multitude of other organisms. This review will discuss some of the mechanisms that enable the persistence of this bacterium in the environment. In particular, we will discuss how V. cholerae can survive stressors such as starvation, temperature, and salinity fluctuations as well as how the organism persists under constant predation by heterotrophic protists.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Science, University of New South Wales Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lutz
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Science, University of New South Wales Sydney, NSW, Australia ; Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute, School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Martina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Erken
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Science, University of New South Wales Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Parisa
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Noorian
authors.affiliation: The Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, Nanyang Technological University Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Shuyang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Science, University of New South Wales Sydney, NSW, Australia ; Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute, School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Diane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: McDougald
keywords: biofilms; chitin; predation; protozoa; starvation adaptation; stress; viable but non-culturable; zooplankton