Immunization with bacterial antigens: Vibrio infections

• Published in: Developments in biological standardization Vol. 90; p. 93
• Main Authors: Toranzo, A E, Santos, Y, Barja, J L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland 1997
• Subjects: Animals; Antigens, Bacterial - isolation & purification; Antigens, Bacterial - pharmacology; Bacterial Proteins - immunology; Bacterial Proteins - isolation & purification; Bacterial Vaccines - isolation & purification; Bacterial Vaccines - pharmacology; Fish Diseases - immunology; Fish Diseases - microbiology; Fish Diseases - prevention & control; Fishes - immunology; Fishes - microbiology; Immunization - veterinary; Lipopolysaccharides - immunology; Lipopolysaccharides - isolation & purification; Serotyping; Species Specificity; Vibrio - classification; Vibrio - immunology; Vibrio - pathogenicity; Vibrio Infections - immunology; Vibrio Infections - prevention & control; Vibrio Infections - veterinary; Virulence - immunology
• ISSN: 0301-5149

Within the genus Vibrio, the species causing the most economically important diseases in marine culture are Vibrio anguillarum, V. ordalii, V. salmonicida and V. vulnificus biotype 2. For these bacterial fish pathogens host range, clinical importance, virulence mechanisms, the antigenic variants relevant to vaccination, the existence of genetic intraspecific diversity and the available vaccines including commercial or domestically produced will be described. Among the 10 serotypes described in V. anguillarum, only serotypes O1, O2 and O3 have been associated with mortality in a great variety of farmed and feral fish worldwide. Whereas serotype O1 is a very homogeneous group from the biochemical, serological and genetic stand-point, within serotype O2 and O3 two antigenic entities have been detected. Moreover these two serotypes present a remarkable genetic heterogeneity. However, many of the available commercial vibriosis vaccines include in their formulations only V. anguillarum serotype O1 in combination with V. ordalii (formerly V. anguillarum biotype 2). In addition no commercial vaccine provides information about the subgroup(s) used as representative of V. anguillarum O2. Recently, Vibrio species taxonomically related to V. anguillarum (VAR) have been isolated from diseased fishes. An extensive characterization of these VAR organisms allowed us to distribute them into at least seven O-serogroups. The inclusion of representative VAR strains in the vibriosis vaccines need to be discussed. V. ordalii, V. salmonicida and V. vulnificus are homogeneous species with respect to biochemical reactions, serology and degree of virulence, possess a narrow host range and seem to be restricted to some geographic areas. Although iron acquisition systems can be involved in the virulence mechanisms of these pathogens, only in V. anguillarum has it been clearly demonstrated that the ability to scavenge iron from the host is a crucial virulence determinant. The role of exotoxins and cell surface associated properties in the Vibrio infections remains to be elucidated.