The aim of this article is to investigate the potential of using sponges as a bioremediator to remove pathogenic bacteria in integrated aquaculture ecosystems. Using the inter-tidal marine sponge Hymeniacidon perleve as a model system, the ability of removing the most common pathogens Escherichia coli and Vibrio anguillarum II in aquaculture waters was screened in laboratory tests. In sterilized natural seawater (SNSW) supplemented with E. coli at (7.0-8.3) x 10(6) cells/mL, H. perleve can remove an average 96% of E.coli within 10.5 h at a filter rate of ca. (7.53-8.03) x 10(7) cells/h (.) g of fresh sponge in two independent tests. Despite the removal efficiency and filter rate are similar; the clearance rates (CR) vary significantly among individual sponge specimens and between two batches. For the tests on V. anguillarum II in SNSW, about 1.5 g fresh sponges can keep the pathogen growth under control at a lower initial density 3.6 x 10(4) cells/mL of 200 mL water volume. Further tests were done for 24 h using about 12 g fresh sponge in 2-L actual seawater collected from two aquaculture sites that have ca. eightfold difference in pathogenic bacteria load. The concentrations of E. coli, Vibrio, and total bacteria at 24 h in treatment groups were markedly lower, at about 0.9%, 6.2%-34.5%, and 13.7%-22.5%, respectively, of those in the control. Using a fluoresce stain 1,1'-dioctadecyl-3,3,3',3'-tetramethylindocarbocyanine perchlorate, E. coli, and V. anguillarum II cells were stained and fed to sponges in two independent tests. The confocal microscope observation confirmed that the sponges filtering-retained and digested these bacteria by phagocytosis. (c) 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.