Generation of a Prophage-Free Variant of the Fast-Growing Bacterium Vibrio natriegens

Abstract

The fast-growing marine bacterium Vibrio natriegens represents an emerging model host for molecular biology and biotechnology, featuring a reported doubling time of less than 10 minutes. In many bacterial species, viral DNA (prophage elements) may constitute a considerable fraction of the whole genome and may have detrimental effects on the growth and fitness of industrial strains. Genome analysis revealed the presence of two prophage regions in the V. natriegens genome that were shown to undergo spontaneous induction under standard cultivation conditions. In this study, we generated a prophage-free variant of V. natriegens . Remarkably, the prophage-free strain exhibited a higher tolerance toward DNA damage and hypo-osmotic stress. Moreover, it was shown to outcompete the wild-type strain in a competitive growth experiment. In conclusion, our study presents the prophage-free variant of V. natriegens as a promising platform strain for future biotechnological applications.