The bacterial community associated with the marine polychaete Ophelina sp.1 (Annelida: Opheliidae) is altered by copper- and zinc-contamination in sediments

Tolerant species of polychaete worms can survive in polluted environments using various resistance mechanisms. One aspect of resistance not often studied in polychaetes is the assistance from symbiotic bacteria. Certain species of symbiotic bacteria associated with polychaetes and other marine invertebrates are metal-resistant and may help the organism to survive. We used next generation 454-sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA sequences associated with polychaetes from a polluted harbour and from a reference site to determine bacterial community structure. We found changes in the bacteria at the polluted site, including increases in the abundance of bacteria from the order Alteromonadales. These changes in the bacteria associated with polychaetes may be relatively easy to detect and could be a useful indicator of pollution.