Bimetallic nanoparticles with sulfated galactan eliminate Vibrio parahaemolyticus in shrimp Penaeus vannamei.

Bimetallic (Au/Ag) nanoparticles (BNPs) have shown enhanced antibacterial activity compared to their monometallic counterparts. Sulfated galactans (SG) are a naturally occurring polymer commonly found in red seaweed Gracilaria fisheri. They are biocompatible and biodegradable and environmentally friendly. In this study, we utilized SG in combination with BNPs to develop composite materials that potentially enhance antibacterial activity against shrimp pathogens Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio harveyi, compared to BNPs or SG alone. BNPs were coated with sulfated galactan (SGBNPs) and characterized using UV-vis spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, zeta potential, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). UV-vis spectroscopy analysis revealed that the surface plasmon peaks of BNPs and SGBNPs appeared at 530 nm and 532 nm, respectively. Zeta potential measurements showed that SGBNPs had a negative charge of -32.4 mV, while the BNPs solution had a positive charge of 38.7 mV. TEM images demonstrated the spherical morphology of both BNPs and SGBNPs with narrow size distributions (3-10 nm). Analysis of the FTIR spectra indicated that SG maintained its backbone structure in SGBNPs, but some functional groups were altered. Notably, SGBNPs showed superior antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities against V. parahaemolyticus and V. harveyi compared to SG and BNPs. Furthermore, treatment with SGBNPs significantly down-regulated the expression of virulence-related genes (toxR, cpsQ, and mfpA) for V. parahaemolyticus 3HP compared to the respective control, bacteria treated with BNPs or SG. Diets supplemented with SGBNPs, BNPs, or SG showed no detrimental impact on the growth of shrimp Penaeus vannamei. Shrimp fed with SGBNPs-supplemented feed showed significantly higher survival rates than those fed with BNPs-supplemented feed when infected with 3HP after being on the supplemented feed for seven days and a subsequent number of fifteen days. These findings collectively demonstrate the benefit of using SG capped Au-Ag BNPs as an antibacterial agent for the prevention and control of Vibrio sp. Infection in shrimp while reducing the risk of environmental contamination.

Depolymerized Fractions of Sulfated Galactans Extracted from Gracilaria fisheri and Their Antibacterial Activity against Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio harveyi.

Various seaweed sulfated polysaccharides have been explored for antimicrobial application. This study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of the native Gracilaria fisheri sulfated galactans (NSG) and depolymerized fractions against the marine pathogenic bacteria Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio harveyi. NSG was hydrolyzed in different concentrations of H2O2 to generate sulfated galactans degraded fractions (SGF). The molecular weight, structural characteristics, and physicochemical parameters of both NSG and SGF were determined. The results revealed that the high molecular weight NSG (228.33 kDa) was significantly degraded to SGFs of 115.76, 3.79, and 3.19 kDa by hydrolysis with 0.4, 2, and 10% H2O2, respectively. The Fourier transformed spectroscopy (FTIR) and 1H- and 13C-Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses demonstrated that the polysaccharide chain structure of SGFs was not affected by H2O2 degradation, but alterations were detected at the peak positions of some functional groups. In vitro study showed that SGFs significantly exerted a stronger antibacterial activity against V. parahaemolyticus and V. harveyi than NSG, which might be due to the low molecular weight and higher sulfation properties of SGF. SGF disrupted the bacterial cell membrane, resulting in leakage of intracellular biological components, and subsequently, cell death. Taken together, this study provides a basis for the exploitation and utilization of low-molecular-weight sulfated galactans from G. fisheri to prevent and control the shrimp pathogens.

Purification and Evaluation of N-benzyl Cinnamamide from Red Seaweed Gracilaria fisheri as an Inhibitor of Vibrio harveyi AI-2 Quorum Sensing.

Previously, we reported that the ethanol extract from red seaweed Gracilaria fisheri effectively decreased biofilm formation of Vibrio harveyi. In this study, the anti-biofilm active compounds in the ethanol extract were isolated and their structures identified. The anti-biofilm fractionation assay for minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) produced two fractions which possessed maximal inhibitory activities toward the biofilm formation of V. harveyi strains 1114 and BAA 1116. Following chromatographic separation of the bioactive fractions, two pure compounds were isolated, and their structures were elucidated using FTIR, NMR, and HR-TOF-MS. The compounds were N-benzyl cinnamamide and α-resorcylic acid. The in vitro activity assay demonstrated that both compounds inhibited the biofilm formation of V. harveyi and possessed the anti-quorum sensing activity by interfering with the bioluminescence of the bacteria. However, the N-benzyl cinnamamide was more potent than α-resorcylic acid with a 10-fold lesser MIC. The present study reveals the beneficial property of the N-benzyl cinnamamide from the ethanol extract as a lead anti-microbial drug against V. harveyi.

Ethanolic extract of red seaweed Gracilaria fisheri and furanone eradicate Vibrio harveyi and Vibrio parahaemolyticus biofilms and ameliorate the bacterial infection in shrimp.

Bacteria respond to host immunity for their proliferation and survival by cell-cell communications such as biofilm formation, bioluminescence, and secreting virulence factors. In the biofilm form, bacteria are more resistant to various antimicrobial treatments and withstand the host's immune system. The approaches of deciphering biofilm formation for treating bacterial infections are therefore highly desirable. Recently, we have reported that the ethanolic extract of the red seaweed Gracilaria fisheri (G. fisheri) enhanced immune activities and inhibited growth of the luminescent bacteria Vibrio harveyi in shrimp. We undertook the present research study in order to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of the ethanolic extract from G. fisheri and furanone, a known biofilm inhibitor, in inhibiting the formation of clinically important Vibrio biofilms. The results showed that sub-lethal concentrations of both the ethanolic extracts (5, 10 and 100 µg ml-1) and furanone (5 µM) inhibited biofilm formation by V. harveyi and Vibrio parahaemolyticus and also light production (luminescence) in V. harveyi. It is known that V. harveyi mediated light production via autoinducer AI-2 pathway, we further determined whether the inhibitory effect of the extract was involved the AI-2 signaling. The bioluminescence assay was conducted in an AI-2 deletion mutant V. harveyi. Supplementation of the AI-2 containing media with the extract or furanone impaired the light production in the mutant V. harveyi suggesting that the extract interfered AI-2 mediated light production similar to furanone. In vivo challenge study showed that the low concentrations (Sub MICs) of the ethanolic extract and furanone decreased bacterial adhesion and colonization in the surfaces of stomach lumen, down-regulated expression of a virulence factor, and protected shrimp against mortality from V. harveyi and V. parahaemolyticus infection. In conclusion, the present results suggest a potential application of the low concentrations of the ethanolic extract of G. fisheri as an efficient approach for treating biofilm-associated Vibrio diseases in aquacultures.

Extract from the fermented soybean product Natto inhibits Vibrio biofilm formation and reduces shrimp mortality from Vibrio harveyi infection.

Many bacteria, including Vibrio pathogens of shrimp, need to colonize and/or form biofilms in hosts or the environment to cause disease. Thus, one possible control strategy for shrimp Vibriosis is biofilm inhibition. With this objective, an extract from the Japanese fermented soybean product, Natto was tested with the luminescent shrimp pathogen Vibrio harveyi (VH) for its ability to inhibit or degrade biofilm and to interfere with cell growth in broth. Natto is a traditional fermentation product of Bacillus subtilis var Natto (BSN1). Using 96 well microtiter plates coated with 0.4% chitosan, we found that biofilm formation by VH was inhibited, while growth in parallel broth cultures was not. When an extract from Natto prepared using BSN1 was mixed with feed for the whiteleg shrimp Penaeus vannamei before immersion challenge with V. harveyi at 106 cfu/ml, survival was significantly higher (p≤0.05) than for control shrimp given feed without these additives. Further work done to test whether d-amino acids were involved in biofilm formation as previously reported for B. subtilis, Staphylococus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa gave negative results. In conclusion, we discovered that Natto extract can inhibit Vibrio biofilm formation and that it or BSN1 alone added to shrimp feed can significantly reduce shrimp mortality in immersion challenges with pathogenic VH. This shows some promise for possible application against Vibriosis in shrimp since Natto is generally regarded as safe (GRAS) for human consumption.

Variable RNA expression from recently acquired, endogenous viral elements (EVE) of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) in shrimp.

The viral accommodation hypothesis proposes that endogenous viral elements (EVE) from both RNA and DNA viruses are being continually integrated into the shrimp genome by natural host processes and that they can result in tolerance to viral infection by fortuitous production of antisense, immunospecific RNA (imRNA). Thus, we hypothesized that previously reported microarray results for the presence of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) open reading frames (ORFs) formerly called 151, 366 and 427 in a domesticated giant tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon) breeding stock might have represented expression from EVE, since the stock had shown uninterrupted freedom from white spot disease (WSD) for many generations. To test this hypothesis, 128 specimens from a current stock generation were confirmed for freedom from WSSV infection using two nested PCR detection methods. Subsequent nested-PCR testing revealed 33/128 specimens (26%) positive for at least one of the ORF at very high sequence identity (95-99%) to extant WSSV. Positive results for ORF 366 (now known to be a fragment of the WSSV capsid protein gene) dominated (28/33 = 84.8%), so 9 arbitrarily selected 366-positive specimens were tested by strand-specific, nested RT-PCR using DNase-treated RNA templates. This revealed variable RNA expression in individual shrimp including no RNA transcripts (n = 1), sense transcripts only (n = 1), antisense transcripts only (n = 2) or transcripts of both sense (n = 5). The latter 7 expression products indicated specimens producing putative imRNA. The variable types and numbers of the EVE and the variable RNA expression (including potential imRNA) support predictions of the viral accommodation hypothesis that EVE are randomly produced and expressed. Positive nested PCR test results for EVE of ORF 366 using DNA templates derived from shrimp sperm (germ cells), indicated that they were heritable.

N-Linked glycosylation is essential for the yellow head virus replication cycle.

Yellow head virus (YHV) particles contain a nucleocapsid protein (p20) and two envelope glycoproteins (gp116 and gp64). The glycans attached to the two glycoproteins are N-linked and are complex and high mannose types, respectively. Here, we show that treatment with the N-linked glycosylation inhibitor tunicamycin in YHV-infected black tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon) resulted in less severe yellow head disease and reduced mortality when compared with untreated control shrimp. Quantitative real-time reverse transcription PCR analysis also revealed lower YHV copy numbers in the haemolymph of treated than control shrimp. This was concurrent with less intense immuno-reactions in tissues of treated versus untreated shrimp using mAbs against all three YHV structural proteins. In addition, transmission electron microscopy of lymphoid organ tissue of the treated and untreated shrimp [eight collected at 36 h and eight at 48 h post-infection (p.i.)] revealed only unenveloped nucleocapsids in all but one of the treated shrimp (collected at 48 h p.i.). By contrast, all the untreated shrimp showed a mixture of many unenveloped and enveloped virions. These results were supported by purification of YHV from the cell-free haemolymph of treated and untreated shrimp followed by YHV structural protein analysis by SDS-PAGE. It revealed three expected structural protein bands (116, 64 and 20 kDa) from the untreated shrimp but no structural protein bands from the tunicamycin-treated shrimp (confirmed by Western blot analysis). Overall, the results indicated that blocking glycosylation with tunicamycin inhibited the formation of mature YHV virions and their subsequent release into shrimp haemolymph, reducing the severity of disease.

RNA-binding domain in the nucleocapsid protein of gill-associated nidovirus of penaeid shrimp.

Gill-associated virus (GAV) infects Penaeus monodon shrimp and is the type species okavirus in the Roniviridae, the only invertebrate nidoviruses known currently. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSAs) using His(6)-tagged full-length and truncated proteins were employed to examine the nucleic acid binding properties of the GAV nucleocapsid (N) protein in vitro. The EMSAs showed full-length N protein to bind to all synthetic single-stranded (ss)RNAs tested independent of their sequence. The ssRNAs included (+) and (-) sense regions of the GAV genome as well as a (+) sense region of the M RNA segment of Mourilyan virus, a crustacean bunya-like virus. GAV N protein also bound to double-stranded (ds)RNAs prepared to GAV ORF1b gene regions and to bacteriophage M13 genomic ssDNA. EMSAs using the five N protein constructs with variable-length N-terminal and/or C-terminal truncations localized the RNA binding domain to a 50 amino acid (aa) N-terminal sequence spanning Met(11) to Arg(60). Similarly to other RNA binding proteins, the first 16 aa portion of this sequence was proline/arginine rich. To examine this domain in more detail, the 18 aa peptide (M(11)PVRRPLPPQPPRNARLI(29)) encompassing this sequence was synthesized and found to bind nucleic acids similarly to the full-length N protein in EMSAs. The data indicate a fundamental role for the GAV N protein proline/arginine-rich domain in nucleating genomic ssRNA to form nucleocapsids. Moreover, as the synthetic peptide formed higher-order complexes in the presence of RNA, the domain might also play some role in protein/protein interactions stabilizing the helical structure of GAV nucleocapsids.

Glycosylation of gp116 and gp64 envelope proteins of yellow head virus of Penaeus monodon shrimp.

Yellow head virus (YHV) is a highly virulent pathogen of Penaeus monodon shrimp that is classified in the genus Okavirus, family Roniviridae, in the order Nidovirales. Separation of virion proteins treated with peptide-N-glycosidase-F (PNGase-F) in SDS-polyacrylamide gels and the use of glycoprotein-specific staining methods indicated that the gp116 and gp64 envelope glycoproteins possess N-linked rather than O-linked glycans. Competitive binding inhibition of lectins with various oligosaccharide specificities indicated that glycans linked to gp64 are mannose-rich, whilst glycans linked to gp116 possess terminal N-acetylgalactosamine and N-acetylglucosamine in addition to terminal mannose-type sugars. Mass spectrometry analyses of peptides generated from YHV proteins before and after deglycosylation with PNGase-F, using combinations of the endoproteinases trypsin, Asp-N and Lys-C, confirmed occupancy of six of the seven potential N-linked glycosylation sites in gp116 and three of the four potential sites in gp64.

Detection and differentiation of yellow head complex viruses using monoclonal antibodies.

Three monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) raised against pathogenic yellow head virus (YHV) from Thailand were tested against tissues of shrimp from Thailand, Australia, Ecuador and India that were purported to be infected with yellow head complex viruses. MAbs V-3-2B and Y-18 were specific to gp116 and gp64 envelope proteins, respectively, while Y-19 was specific to a 20 kDa putative nucleoprotein p20. As a preliminary step, the site of reactivity of the 3 MAbs in YHV was determined by immuno-electron microscopy using ultra-thin sections of YHV-infected shrimp tissue and negatively stained, semi-purified YHV particles. As expected, MAb Y-19 reacted with viral nucleocapsids in ultra-thin sections but not with negatively stained, whole virions; MAb V-3-2B did react with negatively stained, whole virions, but not with virions or nucleocapsids in ultra-thin sections. Unexpectedly, MAb Y-18 did not react with whole or sectioned virions. By immunohistochemistry, MAbs Y-19 and Y-18 reacted with Penaeus monodon tissues infected with either YHV or with gill-associated virus (GAV) from Australia, while MAb V-3-2B reacted with YHV only. In addition, all the YHV and GAV tissue samples gave positive in situ hybridization reactions with a cDNA probe specific to the ORF1b gene of YHV. They also gave expected differential RT-PCR results for YHV and GAV. By contrast, 2 natural Thai shrimp specimens with no gross signs of disease gave similar immunohistochemical reactions and RT-PCR reactions to GAV. However, sequencing of their RT-PCR products showed that they shared 92.7% identity with GAV, but only 79.0% identity with YHV. Although specimens from Ecuador and India displayed histopathology suggestive of YHV infection, they gave negative immunohistochemical reactions with all 3 Mabs, and negative in situ hybridization results. Additional work is required to determine whether a virus from the yellow head complex was responsible for their observed histopathology. These data show that the 3 YHV MAbs could be used in diagnostic situations to differentiate some viruses in the yellow head virus complex.

Evidence for apoptosis correlated with mortality in the giant black tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon infected with yellow head virus.

Histological, cytochemical and ultrastructural changes in giant black tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon were investigated at various time intervals after injection with yellow head virus (YHV). Hemocytes, lymphoid organs (LO) and gills were the main focus of the study. After injection with YHV, onset of mortality varied from 36 h onward. By normal hematoxylin and eosin staining, the 3 tissues showed clear and increasing prevalence of nuclear condensation, pyknosis and karyorrhexis from approximately 36 h post-injection (p.i.) until death, although pathology was evident in the LO as early as 12 h p.i. in some shrimp. By nuclear DNA staining with 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) and by specific labeling of 3'-OH ends of nuclear DNA using a technique called terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxy-UTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL), cells of the 3 tissues showed evidence of chromatin condensation and DNA fragmentation, respectively. Both are generally considered to be characteristic of apoptosis. In addition to TUNEL labeling, evidence for DNA fragmentation was supported by the appearance of approximately 200 base pair DNA ladders at approximately 48 h p.i. in hemocytes of YHV-infected but not uninfected shrimp. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of LO tissue revealed features of apoptosis in tissues of YHV-infected shrimp only. These included marginated, condensed and fragmented chromatin without concurrent cytoplasmic damage. Histological, cytochemical, ultrastructural and biochemical data were consistent with the hypothesis that widespread and progressive apoptosis occurred in susceptible shrimp infected with YHV. Although no specific tests were carried out to determine whether this purported apoptosis was the cause of mortality, moribund shrimp had extensive deterioration of vital tissues such as the hemolymph, gills, heart and LO, suggesting that many essential bodily functions had been severely compromised. This probably resulted in the gross signs of lethargy and weakness seen, and it is reasonable to suggest that further, progressive deterioration could have led to the collapse of vital functions followed by death.