Short description:
Climate change and anthropogenic pressures may have dramatic effects on marine ecosystems with strong negative impacts on fisheries and aquaculture as the spread of emerging pathogens and the modification in distribution and balance among bacterial species. Vibrio spp. represent the majority of the marine and estuarine biomass. Several studies demonstrated the spread of Vibrio cholerae in many regions, including Italy, where cholera outbreaks have never been reported. Changes in environmental bacterial communities may affect host-microbiota interactions and mutualistic symbiotic relationships, causing potential adverse effects on the physiological state of animals, growth performance and product safety and quality. This research topic aims to explore biodiversity in microbial ecosystems, focusing on Vibrio populations, in order to elucidate the complex dynamic interactions between molluscs and their microbiota. Culture-dependent and culture-independent methods will be applied on two different shellfish species, Crassostrea cigas and Ruditapes philippinarum, to evaluate the composition of bacterial community focusing on Vibrio populations. In addition different methods of shellfish depuration will be also assessed. All these data will be integrated with environmental and animal health parameters in order to develop dynamic models providing useful forecasts to farmers and authorities involved in food safety controls.
Five publications related to the Research Topic for the interview: