Abstract
Pollution has a considerable effect on biological communities, in terms of size and diversity of the populations. Yet, the precise consequences of human activity on microbial communities in the marine environment are poorly understood. Therefore, in an ongoing collaborative research programme between Heriot-Watt University and the Ocean University of Qingdao, bacteria were isolated in 1999 and 2000 from marine sediment, seawater, seaweed, fish and shellfish, taken from locations in Shandong Province adjacent to Qingdao. Sampling locations were comprised of industrial and aquacultural sites and a clean, control site. In order to analyse microbial diversity, a polyphasic approach was adopted for characterisation of these isolates, specifically through examination of key phenotypic traits, i.e. using Biolog GN MicroPlate™ profiles, bacterial whole cell protein profiles and 16S and 23S rRNA gene sequences. These techniques yielded complex taxonomic data, which were subjected to statistical and cluster analyses. The application of these methods to studies of microbial communities is discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Austin, B., M. Alsina, D. A. Austin, A. R. Blanch, P. A. D. Grimont, et al., 1995. Identification and typing of Vibrio anguillarum: a comparison of methods. Systematic and Applied Microbiology, 18: 285–302.
Austin, B., D. A. Austin, A. R. Blanch, M. Cerda, F. Grimont, et al., 1997. A comparison of methods for the typing of fish-pathogenic Vibrio spp. Systematic and Applied Microbiology, 20: 89–101.
Austin, B., and D. A. Austin, 1999. Bacterial Fish Pathogens: Disease of Farmed and Wild Fish. 3rd (Revised) edition. Springer-Praxis, Godalming.
Austin, B., 2000. The effects of pollution on fish health. Journal of Applied Microbiology Symposium Supplement, 85: 234–242.
Bochner, B. R., 1989. Sleuthing out bacterial identities. Nature (London), 339: 157–158.
Breschel, T. S., and F. L. Singleton, 1992. Use of the API Rapid NFT system for identifying nonfermentative and fermentative marine bacteria. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 58: 21–26.
Cen, F., and Zhang, D., 1998. Development and status of the aquaculture industry in the People’s Republic of China. World Aquaculture, 29: 52–56.
Cowan, S. T., K. J. Steel, G. I. Barrow, and R. K. A. Feltham, 1993. Cowan and Steel’s Manual for the Identification of Medical Bacteria. 3rd edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
FAO, 1995. Aquaculture production 1984–1993. FAO Fisheries Circular, No. 815, FIDI/C 815 (Rev. 7). FAO, Rome.
GESAMP, 1998. Report of the 28th Session of GESAMP, Geneva, 20–24 April 1998. GESAMP Reports and Studies No. 66. World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 44 pp.
Goto, K., T. Omura, Y. Hara, and Y. Sadaie, 2000. Application of the partial 16S rDNA sequence as an index for rapid identification of species in the genus Bacillus. Journal of General and Applied Microbiology, 46: 1–8.
Hancock, I. C., and I. R. Poxton, 1988. Bacterial Cell Surface Techniques. John Wiley & Sons Ltd., Chichester.
Johnsen, K., S. Andersen, and C. S. Jacobsen, 1996. Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of phenanthrene-degrading fluorescent Pseudomonas biovars. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 62: 3818–3825.
Kautsky, N., P. Ronnback, M. Tedengren, and M. Troell, 2000. Ecosystem perspectives on management of disease in shrimp pond farming. Aquaculture, 191: 145–161.
Pillay, T. V. R., 1990. History of aquaculture in its present state. In: Aquaculture Principles and Practices, Fishing News Books, Oxford, pp. 1–30.
Pot, B., P. Vandamme, and K. Kersters, 1994. Analysis of electrophoretic whole-organism protein fingerprints. In: Chemical Methods in Prokaryotic Systematics, M. Goodfellow and A. G. O’Donnell, eds., John Wiley & Sons Ltd., Chichester, pp. 493–521.
Sung, H. H., S. F. Hsu, Chen, C. K., Ting, Y. Y., and Chao, W. L., 2001. Relationships between disease outbreak in cultured tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon and the composition of Vibrio communities in pond water and shrimp hepatopancreas during cultivation. Aquaculture, 192: 101–110.
Truu, J., E. Talpsep, E. Heinaru, U. Stottmeister, H. Wand, et al., 1999. Comparison of API 20NE and Biolog GN identification systems assessed by techniques of multivariate analyses. Journal of Microbiological Methods, 36: 193–201.
Vandenberghe, J., Li, Y., L. Verdonck, Li, J., P. Sorgeloos, et al., 1998. Vibrios associated with Penaeus chinensis (Crustacea: Decapoda) larvae in Chinese shrimp hatcheries. Aquaculture, 169: 121–132.
Vauterin, L., and P. Vauterin, 1992. Computer aided comparison of electrophoretic patterns for grouping and identification of microorganisms. European Microbiology, 1: 37–41.
Verthaak, A. D., D. Bucke, T. Lang, P. Wester, J. Johl, et al., 1992. Fish disease monitoring along a pollution transect: a case study using dab Limanda limanda in the German Bight, North Sea. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 91: 173–192.
Wang, Q. Y., Cai, S. L., and Li, J., 1997. The shrimp farming industry in China. World Aquaculture, 28: 23–29.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Robertson, P.A.W., MacInnes, J., Sparagano, O.A.E. et al. Methods used to study bacterial diversity in the marine environment around Qingdao. J Ocean Univ. China 1, 153–156 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11802-002-0010-z
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11802-002-0010-z