Inhibition of Vibrio cholerae biofilm by AiiA enzyme produced from Bacillus spp.

Vibrio cholerae is the causative agent of water-borne diarrheal disease, cholera. The formation of biofilm favors survival and persistence of V. cholerae in the aquatic environment and also inside the host. AHL lactonase (AiiA), a metallo-beta-lactamase produced by Bacillus spp., blocks quorum sensing in Gram-negative bacteria by hydrolyzing N-acyl-homoserine lactones (AHLs). In the present investigation, AiiA-mediated inhibition of V. cholerae biofilm was studied. Two novel alleles of aiiA-encoding genes from Bacillus spp. were expressed in E. coli, and the results demonstrated that AiiA enzyme is a potent inhibitor of V. cholerae biofilm.