Review article

https://doi.org/10.46419/vs.52.6.12

Halophilic vibrios in shellfish as potentially pathogenic causative agents of zoonoses in humans

Natalija Džafić orcid.org/0000-0001-7658-5517 ; Croatian Veterinary Institute, Veterinary Department Rijeka, Croatia
Kristina Kvrgić orcid.org/0000-0002-2102-1113 ; Croatian Veterinary Institute, Veterinary Department Rijeka, Croatia
Lidija Kozačinski orcid.org/0000-0002-7534-7362 ; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Zagreb, Croatia
Andrea Humski orcid.org/0000-0003-3027-1306 ; Croatian Veterinary Institute, Zagreb, Croatia

Abstract

Breeding, collection and trade of bivalve molluscs is regulated by a number of laws aimed at placing healthy food on the market. The legislation does not provide for the control of Vibrio spp., which may result the marketing and consumption of bivalve molluscs contaminated with Vibrio spp. bacteria, ultimately causing human disease. The significance of the most important potentially pathogenic halophilic vibrios, such as V. cholerae, V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus, in human infection is presented in this paper. Over the last twenty years, research has been conducted in the countries of the Mediterranean region, confirming the presence of vibrios in seawater, shellfish, sediment and wastewater. In Croatia, the presence of Vibrio spp. has been proven in rare studies along the Adriatic coast, with the dominance of V. parahaemolitycus in shellfish. The increasingly pronounced phenomenon of global warming coincides with the unexpected occurrence of Vibrio spp. infections in northern Europe, primarily in the Baltic Sea. Four important features of the members of the genus Vibrio make them suitable for assessing climate change. These are temperature sensitivity (very good growth at temperatures above 15°C); rapid replication; occurrence in areas where they have never occurred (such as northern Europe, Alaska, Chile, northeast USA), and the possibility of entering the body through food consumption and exposure to contaminated water. From the point of view of food and shellfish safety as food, global warming and climate change have a significant impact on the dynamics and distribution of the potentially pathogenic halophile vibrios in areas where they have not historically been proven to cause human diseases. In recent decades, various methods have been developed with the aim of more reliable identification of Vibrio species. The aim was to improve classical microbiological methods, while numerous studies were based on the development and application of molecular techniques. Studies comparing the results of culture microbiological methods and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) have proven to have significantly higher sensitivity and reliability in the detection of pathogens.

Keywords

bivalve molluscs; Vibrio spp.; potential pathogens; zoonoses

Hrčak ID:

260679

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/260679

Publication date:

2.5.2021.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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