Embryos of Homarus americanus are Protected by Epibiotic Bacteria

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Embryos of the American lobster, Homarus americanus, are remarkably resistant to infection by the fungus Lagenidium callinectes, a pathogen of many crustaceans. The surfaces of healthy lobster embryos are covered almost exclusively by a single, Gram-negative bacterium, which grows in a dense mosaic pattern. In culture, this bacterium produces a compound that completely inhibits the growth of the pathogenic fungus in vitro at 10 mcg/ml. Large-scale fermentation, extraction, and subsequent chromatographic purification led to the identification of the antifungal substance as 4-hydroxyphenethyl alcohol (tyrosol), an antibiotic substance known to be produced by terrestrial fungi.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: