title: Enterococcus species diversity and molecular characterization of biomarker genes in Enterococcus faecalis in Port Blair Bay, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.
abstract: This study was performed to evaluate the abundance and diversity of Enterococcus sp. and the distribution of biomarker genes in Enterococcus faecalis in Port Blair Bay, Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The Enterococcus sp. densities at the seven sampling stations were highly influenced by tidal fluctuations and season. The distributions and diversities of species varied in the inner and outer regions of Port Blair Bay. Among the 1816 total isolates, the occurrence of fecal Enterococcus was high (1.78×10(4) CFU/100 mL) in Phoenix Bay. Moreover, 67.76% of the isolates were identified as Enterococcus, and the most frequently identified species were E. hirae, E. avium and E. faecalis. Assessments of antibiotic resistance and biomarker genes revealed the maximum occurrence in the Aberdeen Bay isolates. The most prevalent biomarker genes observed in the E. faecalis isolates were gelE and asa1, whereas cyl was not found among the isolates. In silico sequence analysis of biomarker genes of E. faecalis also revealed that they are evolutionarily well conserved with those of earlier reports. Further, multivariate analysis distinguished the JB, PB and OS stations from the other stations according to distinctive microbial densities and compositions. In addition, the Shannon-Wiener diversity indices and box-whisker plots further facilitated and supported the multivariate results.
authors: Andaman and Nicobar Centre for Ocean Science and Technology, Earth System Sciences Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (ESSO-NIOT), Port Blair 744 103, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. Electronic address: bmeena79@yahoo.com.
authors: Balakrishnan
authors: B
authors: Meena
authors: Andaman and Nicobar Centre for Ocean Science and Technology, Earth System Sciences Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (ESSO-NIOT), Port Blair 744 103, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. Electronic address: anburajanl@yahoo.co.in.
authors: Lawrance
authors: L
authors: Anburajan
authors: Andaman and Nicobar Centre for Ocean Science and Technology, Earth System Sciences Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (ESSO-NIOT), Port Blair 744 103, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.
authors: Thadikamala
authors: T
authors: Sathish
authors: Marine Biotechnology Division, Ocean Science and Technology for Islands Group, ESSO-NIOT, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, Chennai 600 100, India.
authors: Rangamaran Vijaya
authors: RV
authors: Raghavan
authors: Marine Biotechnology Division, Ocean Science and Technology for Islands Group, ESSO-NIOT, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, Chennai 600 100, India.
authors: Dilip Kumar
authors: DK
authors: Jha
authors: Andaman and Nicobar Centre for Ocean Science and Technology, Earth System Sciences Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (ESSO-NIOT), Port Blair 744 103, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.
authors: Pitchiah
authors: P
authors: Venkateshwaran
authors: Andaman and Nicobar Centre for Ocean Science and Technology, Earth System Sciences Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (ESSO-NIOT), Port Blair 744 103, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.
authors: Apurba Kumar
authors: AK
authors: Das
authors: Andaman and Nicobar Centre for Ocean Science and Technology, Earth System Sciences Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (ESSO-NIOT), Port Blair 744 103, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.
authors: Palaiya Sukumaran
authors: PS
authors: Dheenan
authors: Andaman and Nicobar Centre for Ocean Science and Technology, Earth System Sciences Organization-National Institute of Ocean Technology (ESSO-NIOT), Port Blair 744 103, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.
authors: Nambali Valsalan
authors: NV
authors: Vinithkumar
authors: Marine Biotechnology Division, Ocean Science and Technology for Islands Group, ESSO-NIOT, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, Chennai 600 100, India.
authors: Gopal
authors: G
authors: Dharani
authors: Marine Biotechnology Division, Ocean Science and Technology for Islands Group, ESSO-NIOT, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, Chennai 600 100, India. Electronic address: head.mbt@niot.res.in.
authors: Ramalingam
authors: R
authors: Kirubagaran
mesh_terms: D061006:Bays / Q000382:microbiology; D016983:Enterococcus / Q000145:classification* / Q000254:growth & development; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis / Q000235:genetics; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005243:Feces; D005819:Genetic Markers / Q000502:physiology; D014644:Genetic Variation; D007194:India; D062312:Islands; D014871:Water Microbiology
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers
keywords: Antibiotic resistance; Biomarker genes; Box-whisker plots; Cluster analysis; Enterococcus sp.