Occurrence of potentially pathogenic vibrios in the marine environment of the Straits of Messina (Italy)

The occurrence of potentially pathogenic vibrios in the Ionian coast of the Straits of Messina (Italy) as free living and associated with small and large size classes of plankton is here studied. In order to elucidate the role of copepods, which represent the main component of zooplankton, the presence of potentially pathogenic vibrios as firmly bound to copepods is here investigated. The correlation between the occurrence of Vibrio spp. and that of the indicator bacteria have been determined. Of the total 137 isolated vibrios, 27 were free living, 28 associated with small plankton, 38 associated with large plankton, and 44 adhering to copepods. V. alginoliticus was the predominant species, followed by V. cholera, V. vulnificus, V. fluvialis, V. parahaemolyticus, V. metschnikovii, V. campbellii, V. cincinnatiensis, V. furnissi, V. Pelagius and V. mediterranei. Finally, free-living and plankton-associated Vibrio spp. were present in both high and low faecal-contaminated periods showing their independence from seawater pollution