Vibrio parahaemolyticus Metagenome. Vibrio parahaemolyticus

Juvenile of Penaeus vannamei inoculated with a moderate virulent strain Vp M0607 and a highly virulent strain Vp M0904 responsible of acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND), an emerging shrimp disease, and water samples collected from the bottom of the experimental units were analyzed using shotgun metagenomics. There were variations in the water microbiota community structure, which were dependent on the virulence degree and time along the experiment. A significant marked reduction was observed in Neptuniibacter spp., particularly after inoculation with M0904. The above suggests that Vp strains might use the T6SS1 with a dual function, killing surrounding bacteria and damage the shrimp hepatopancreas during intoxication by AHPND. In addition, we found a relationship between the copy numbers of the virulent plasmid and the bacterial density. This study allows the understanding of the bacterial interactions that could happen in shrimp farms.