Quorum sensing and quorum quenching in Vibrio harveyi: lessons learned from in vivo work

Abstract

Luminescent vibrios, bacteria belonging to the species Vibrio harveyi and closely related species, are important pathogens in aquaculture that can affect almost all types of cultured animals. Due to large-scale use of antibiotics, many luminescent vibrios have acquired (multiple) resistance, which render antibiotic treatments ineffective. One of the alternative strategies that has recently been developed to control infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria is the disruption of quorum sensing, bacterial cell-to-cell communication. The quorum sensing system of V. harveyi has been studied quite intensively in vitro. Recent studies have been directed towards understanding the impact of quorum sensing and quorum sensing disruption on the virulence of luminescent vibrios towards different host organisms in vivo. This mini-review aims at discussing the current knowledge of quorum sensing in luminescent vibrios in vivo. Subsequently, quorum quenching by halogenated furanones is discussed and finally, some directions for further research are presented.