Simultaneous Direct Counting of Total and Specific Microbial Cells in Seawater, Using a Deep-Sea Microbe as Target

To rapidly and accurately enumerate total and specific microbes in aquatic samples, fluorescent in situ hybridization was combined with direct counting via direct immobilization of cells on a polymer-coated Nuclepore filter. The technique, named FISH-DC, achieved almost complete recovery of total cells and reproducibility of Psychrobacter pacificensis cells of deep-sea origin (error, ≤3%) in a mixed culture and in natural seawater. Target cells immobilized on the filter were also successfully enumerated after stringent 3-cycle hybridization and even after a 16-month preservation at −30°C.