Attenuated virulence of pigment-producing mutant of Aeromonas veronii bv. sobria in HeLa cells and Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

Aeromonas species are potential water/foodborne pathogens, whereas Aeromonas veronii bv. sobria is one of the most virulent species to human and fish. Most current experimental evidence has publicized that suicide plasmid dependent IS1-element untargeted integration into A. veronii bv. sobria ATCC 9071T strain was recently used to generate brown pigment-producing and spontaneous pelleting (BP+SP+) mutant. Current study was conducted to compare virulence of wild-type ATCC 9071T strain and its BP+SP+ mutant with respect to cytotoxicity in HeLa cells and lethality in Nile tilapia.