Localization and bacteriostasis of Vibrio introduced into the Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei

Although numerous mechanisms of immune defense have been described in crustaceans, the tissue distribution and fate of live bacteria introduced into the host remain unclear. In the present study, Litopenaeus vannamei were injected with a sub-lethal dose of kanamycin-resistant Vibrio campbellii expressing green fluorescent protein. Accumulation of intact bacteria was quantified by real-time PCR, while bacteriostasis was quantified as the percentage of intact bacteria that could not be recovered by selective plating. Over the 240 min examined, the lymphoid organ contained the greatest number of intact V. campbellii per gram tissue as well as the lowest percentage of culturable V. campbellii compared to other tissues, including the hemolymph. In contrast, the gills and hepatopancreas accumulated intact bacteria, but contained a significantly greater percentage of culturable bacteria than the hemolymph after 240 min. These data suggest that the lymphoid organ plays a major role in bacterial uptake and bacteriostasis in penaeid shrimp.