• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.10
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• pp.1161-1167
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• 2017

In order to find a new antimicrobial bacterium, we performed screening for antimicrobial activity of bacteria isolated from the eggs of a sea hare. The newly identified strain was designated as Phaeobacter inhibens KJ-2, based on the biochemical characterization and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. A colony of P. inhibens KJ-2 showed a circular and ruler-like smooth form at the edge, and a brown color. However, when maintained with a longer incubation time, its coloring was transformed into dark brown. From the result of SEM, P. inhibens KJ-2 is a bacillus which has a length of $0.8{\sim}1.0{\mu}m$ and a width of $0.4{\sim}0.6{\mu}m$. The optimal growth and antimicrobial activity were observed by shaking the culture for 24 hr at $20^{\circ}C$, which showed potent activity against pathogenic bacteria including Vibrio logei, Vibrio campbellii, Vibrio mimicus, Vibrio vulnificus, and Vibrio salmonicida. The antimicrobial activity was proportional to the amount of produced acylated homoserine lactones (AHLs). Therefore, we suggest that production of antimicrobial materials from P. inhibens KJ-2 is regulated by Quorum sensing (QS).