Ar. Blanch et al., Diversity of Vibrio spp. populations in several exhibition aquaria with a shared water supply, LETT APPL M, 33(2), 2001, pp. 137-143
Aims: Abiotic factors may influence the settlement of bacterial populations
in similar marine environments. Exhibition aquaria are a model for the stu
dy of the settlement of bacteria in different environment. Vibrio populatio
ns in the seawater reservoir, the Mediterranean tank and the Tropical tank
from an exhibition aquarium on the western coast of the Mediterranean were
compared and the effect of abiotic factors on the structure of these popula
tions was considered.
Methods and Results: High diversity indexes and similar Vibrio populations
were found in the water of the reservoir and of the Mediterranean tank, whe
reas a lower diversity and different main populations were found in the wat
er of the Tropical tank. The antibiotic resistance profiles of the most rep
resentative strains, presented a number of differences depending on the ori
gin of the sample.
Conclusions: Abiotic conditions, mainly temperature, may determine the stru
cture and composition of Vibrio populations in exhibition aquaria.
Significance and Impact of the Study: Bacterial monitoring of water could b
e useful for health management of aquatic environments.