Characterising the mycobiome of healthy and wounded reef sharks in the Seychelles archipelago

Sharks frequently sustain cutaneous injuries throughout their lifetimes, yet subsequent infections are surprisingly rare, and wounds appear to heal rapidly. This has led scientists to explore the origins behind the putative superior capacity of shark skin in fending off infection. Increasingly research has turned to the skin-associated microbiome for the answer. Although exploration of the bacterial microbiome has led to it being hailed as a potential key factor in wound healing, the role of the fungal microbiome (or mycobiome) remains significantly overlooked. Here, we endeavoured to characterise the fungal communities colonising the skin of 46 black tip reef sharks (Carcharhinus melanopterus) and one sickle fin lemon shark (Negaprion acutidens), and aimed to uncover whether the presence of wounds would result in shifts within fungal communities.