Bossier, P.

Defoirdt, T.

Mardel, M.

Natrah, F.M.I.

Sorgeloos, P.

Wiyoto, W.

Open Marine Archive

 - 58 -
QUORUM SENSING INHIBITORS FROM MICRO-ALGAE COMMONLY 
USED IN AQUACULTURE 
Natrah F.M.I.1,2, Tom Defoirdt1, Mireille Mardel1, Wiyoto Wiyoto1, Patrick Sorgeloos1 and  
Peter Bossier1 
1 Laboratory of Aquaculture & Artemia Reference Center, Ghent University, Rozier 44,  
9000 Gent, Belgium 
2 Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, University Putra Malaysia, 43400, Serdang, 
Selangor, Malaysia 
E-mail : natrah@putra.upm.edu.my 
 
Quorum sensing, bacterial cell-to-cell communication with small signal molecules such as acyl-
homoserine lactones, regulates the virulence of many (aquatic) pathogenic bacteria (Schauder and 
Bassler, 2001; Waters and Bassler, 2005). Therefore, interfering with quorum sensing is currently 
being explored as a novel biocontrol strategy to fight bacterial infections. In this study, the effects 
of different marine and freshwater micro-algal strains on acyl-homoserine lactone-regulated 
phenotypes of three reporter strains were investigated. Two freshwater micro-algae inhibited 
violacein production of quorum sensing reporter strain Chromobacterium violaceum CV026. Further 
tests using Escherichia coli JB523 showed that micro-algal extracts inhibited or stimulated quorum 
sensing, depending on the algal strain. One freshwater and 5 marine algae showed quorum sensing 
inhibitory activity, whereas two algae stimulated quorum sensing-regulated gene expression. Micro-
algal strains that showed inhibitory activity in the previous assays also inhibited acyl-homoserine 
lactone-regulated bioluminescence in the aquaculture pathogen Vibrio harveyi. The growth of all 
reporter strains was found to be unaffected by the micro-algal samples. The most promising micro-
algal strain was found to be Chlorella saccharophila CCAP211/48, as its extracts inhibited quorum 
sensing-regulated gene expression in all three reporter strains. This study revealed that micro-algae 
are able to act as a biocontrol agent against pathogenic bacteria in aquaculture.  
 
References 
Schauder S and B.L. Bassler. 2001. The languages of bacteria. Genes and Development 15:1468-
1480. 
Waters C.M. and B.L. Bassler. 2005. Quorum sensing: cell-to-cell communication in bacteria. Annual 
Review Cell and Developmental Biology 21:319-346. 


Quorum sensing inhibitors from micro-algae commonly used in aquaculture

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