Stylophora pistillata heat stress holobiont gene expression and microbiome

Corals from the northern Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba exhibit extreme thermal tolerance. To examine the underlying gene transcription dynamics, we exposed Stylophora pistillata from the Gulf of Aqaba to short-term (18 hours) and long-term (14 days) heat stress with peak seawater temperatures ranging from their maximum monthly mean of 27C (baseline) to 29.5C, 32C, and 34.5C.