摘要：Acinetobacter has been frequently detected in backwater areas of the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) region. We here employed
Caenorhabditis elegans to perform biosafety assessment of
Acinetobacter strains isolated from backwater area in the TGR region. Among 21 isolates and 5 reference strains of
Acinetobacter, exposure to
Acinetobacter strains of AC1, AC15, AC18, AC21,
A. baumannii ATCC 19606
T,
A. junii NH88-14, and
A. lwoffii DSM 2403
T resulted in significant decrease in locomotion behavior and reduction in lifespan of
Caenorhabditis elegans. In nematodes, exposure to
Acinetobacter strains of AC1, AC15, AC18, AC21,
A. baumannii,
A. junii and
A. lwoffii also resulted in significant reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Moreover, exposure to
Acinetobacter isolates of AC1, AC15, AC18, and AC21 led to significant increase in expressions of both SOD-3::GFP and some antimicrobial genes (
lys-1,
spp-12,
lys-7,
dod-6,
spp-1,
dod-22,
lys-8, and/or
F55G11.4) in nematodes. The
Acinetobacter isolates of AC1, AC15, AC18, and AC21 had different morphological, biochemical, phylogenetical, and virulence gene properties. Our results suggested that exposure risk of some
Acinetobacter strains isolated from the TGR region exists for environmental organisms and human health. In addition,
C. elegans is useful to assess biosafety of
Acinetobacter isolates from the environment.
