Introducing the starlet sea anemone Nematostella vectensis as a model for investigating microbial mediation of health and disease in hexacorals

[摘要] (cont.) In addition, ribotypes of Pseudomonas pseudoalcaligenes, Endozoicimonas elysicola and Spirochaetes were found associated with multiple environments. Most of the microbial populations in the N. vectensis microbiome were closely related to microbial associates of other hexacorallians. Observation of shared ribotypes among different sampling locations suggests a specific association with N. vectensis, consistent with a hypothesized role as symbionts. We also observed significant microbial community shifts in reduced-flora N. vectensis raised under sterile laboratory conditions and the persistence of a naturally occurring P. pseudoalcaligenes ribotype in the microbiome under different antibiotic perturbations, supporting the hypothesis that this population maintains association with N. vectensis across changing environmental conditions. Finally FISH analysis using eubacteria and ribotype-specific probes revealed that microbes form cell aggregates in tight association with animal mesentery tissues, suggesting that host-microbe interactions may be tissue-specific.

[发布机构] Massachusetts Institute of Technology