Abstract

Bacteriophages (phages), viruses that specifically infect and lyse their host bacteria, hold significant potential for application in the prevention of Vibrio infections and the treatment of vibriosis for aquaculture. In this study, a novel Vibrio harveyi phage, designated Vibrio Vibrio phage LRZ, was isolated from an abalone aquaculture farm in Lianjiang, Fujian Province. Its biological characteristics and complete genomic sequence were investigated. The results demonstrated that Vibrio phage LRZ exhibits robust tolerance to acidic/alkaline environments, as well as elevated temperatures. The phage exhibited a latent period of approximately 30 min and reached the plateau phase at approximately 190 min post-infection, with an estimated burst size of 134 plaque-forming units (PFU) per cell. Whole-genome sequencing using the Illumina platform revealed a genome length of 43,274 base pairs (bp) with a guanine-cytosine (GC) content of 39.45%. Annotation identified 51 open reading frames (ORFs), encoding proteins involved in phage structural assembly, host lysis, DNA replication, and metabolism. Bioinformatic predictions did not identify antibiotic resistance or virulence genes in the LRZ genome. BLAST comparative analysis indicated the highest similarity (75.47%) to Vibrio phage VPMS1, establishing Vibrio phage LRZ as a novel isolate of Vibrio phages. Phylogenetic analysis further confirmed its closest relationship to Vibrio phage VPMS1, placing them within the same genus in the class Caudoviricetes. Vibrio phage LRZ could serve as a valuable novel genomic resource for studying phage evolution and offers novel perspectives for the biocontrol of V. harveyi in aquaculture settings.