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Bacteria Associated with Toxic Clonal Cultures of the Dinoflagellate Ostreopsis lenticularis

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Abstract

The marine toxic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis lenticularis has been implicated as the major vector in ciguatera seafood poisoning on the southwest coast of Puerto Rico. Studies have demonstrated that associated bacteria play a role in the ciguatoxin production and that different clonal cultures of O. lenticularis harbor different culturable bacteria. In this study, more than 125 associated bacteria from two toxic clonal cultures of O. lenticularis (no. 302 and no. 303) were analyzed utilizing polymerase chain reaction amplification of the partial small subunit ribosomal DNA (rRNA), denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis, and DNA sequencing. Approximately 50% of total bacteria identified in both cultures were a single species belonging to the Cytophaga–Flavobacter–Bacteroides complex. This bacterium was also found in six new O. lenticularis clonal cultures established 10 years after the original cultures used in this study and absent from a clonal culture of a different dinoflagellate species. The data presented here indicate a persistent and apparently specific association of this bacterium with O. lenticularis, which makes it a candidate involved in ciguatoxin production.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Mr. Luis Lugo (University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez) for his help in the establishment of clonal cultures of Ostreopsis lenticularis, to Mrs. Deborah Cedeño for providing the C. polykricoides cultures, and Dr. Arup Sen (Sustainable Cellulosics, Inc.) for critically reviewing the manuscript. This research was supported in part by a grant (to NSG) from the NIH-MBRS-SCORE program (SO6-08103).

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  1. Lumarie Pérez-Guzmán

    Present address: Department of Biology, College of Natural Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus, P.O. Box 23341, San Juan, 00931-3341, Puerto Rico

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Marine Sciences, Isla Magueyes Marine Station, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus, P.O. Box 908, Lajas, 00667, Puerto Rico

    Lumarie Pérez-Guzmán, Ana E. Pérez-Matos, William Rosado, Thomas R. Tosteson & Nadathur S. Govind

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  1. Lumarie Pérez-Guzmán
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  2. Ana E. Pérez-Matos
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  3. William Rosado
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  4. Thomas R. Tosteson
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  5. Nadathur S. Govind
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Correspondence to Nadathur S. Govind.

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Pérez-Guzmán, L., Pérez-Matos, A.E., Rosado, W. et al. Bacteria Associated with Toxic Clonal Cultures of the Dinoflagellate Ostreopsis lenticularis . Mar Biotechnol 10, 492–496 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10126-008-9088-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10126-008-9088-7

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