Discover how high-throughput droplet microfluidics enables researchers to uncover rare beneficial bacteria that conventional screening methods may overlook!!
On November 17, 2026, On-chip Biotechnologies will host a scientific webinar featuring research by Keiichiro Koiwai and Hajime Yuasa from the Laboratory of Genome Science at Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology.
The webinar will explore how microfluidic droplet technology can accelerate the discovery of promising microbial biocontrol agents for sustainable aquaculture.
The Challenge: Finding Beneficial Bacteria Beyond Conventional Culturing
Infectious diseases remain a major challenge for sustainable aquaculture, particularly in shrimp farming, where effective disease prevention strategies are urgently needed.
Beneficial bacteria capable of suppressing pathogens offer a promising alternative to antibiotics. However, conventional agar plate-based isolation methods tend to favor fast-growing, abundant microorganisms, potentially overlooking rare or slow-growing bacteria with valuable biological functions.
How can researchers access this hidden microbial diversity?
A Droplet-Based Approach to High-Throughput Microbial Screening
Using the On-chip Droplet Generator and On-chip Droplet Selector, the researchers developed a high-throughput screening platform to identify bacteria with potential antagonistic activity against Vibrio harveyi, an important shrimp pathogen.
Natural microbial communities collected from kuruma shrimp (Penaeus japonicus) rearing water were co-encapsulated with an engineered GFP-expressing V. harveyi strain in picoliter-scale water-in-oil droplets.
By screening nearly 900,000 individual droplets and selectively sorting those showing reduced GFP fluorescence, the researchers successfully isolated 18 bacterial candidates belonging to three genera: Pseudoalteromonas, Shewanella, and Tenacibaculum.
Amplicon sequencing revealed that these bacteria originated from extremely low-abundance environmental populations. Furthermore, in vivo experiments demonstrated improved shrimp survival following treatment with a selected Shewanella strain.
What You’ll Learn
- How droplet microfluidics enables high-throughput screening of complex microbial communities
- How fluorescence-based droplet sorting can help identify potential pathogen-suppressing bacteria
- Why rare microbial populations may contain valuable candidates missed by conventional isolation methods
- How droplet-based microbial discovery can contribute to sustainable aquaculture and biological control research
Webinar Details
Title: Hunting Helpful Bacteria in Droplets: Screening Biocontrol Agents to Protect Shrimp
Date: November 17, 2026
Presenters: Keiichiro Koiwai & Hajime Yuasa
Affiliation: Laboratory of Genome Science, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/8617931428918/WN_PwhWWGrHT9uYtRa2UDidog
Join Us
Whether you work in microbial ecology, microbiology, biotechnology, aquaculture, Marine biology, or high-throughput screening, this webinar offers insights into how droplet microfluidics can expand access to previously overlooked microbial diversity.
Register now to discover how screening hundreds of thousands of microdroplets can help uncover beneficial bacteria with real-world potential.
