Coral reef invertebrate microbiomes

Coral reef invertebrates host complex microbiomes and it can be challenging to understand which members are important for host fitness. We looked at a range of molecular and ecological characteristics to better understand this. Coral, octocoral and sponge samples were collected on SCUBA between May-October 2017 from multiple reefs on the central and northern GBR. Data were sequenced for the 16S rRNA gene to profile the microbial community and 18S rRNA, COI & ITS1 to reconstruct host phylogeny. Data was analysed using a range of bioinformatic techniques.

珊瑚礁无脊椎动物宿主携带复杂的微生物组，解析其中哪些类群对宿主适合度具有关键作用，一直是颇具挑战的研究课题。为更好地解析这一问题，本研究考察了一系列分子与生态特征。2017年5月至10月期间，研究团队通过水肺潜水（SCUBA）从大堡礁（Great Barrier Reef, GBR）中北部的多个珊瑚礁采集了珊瑚、八放珊瑚及海绵样本。针对16S rRNA基因开展测序以解析微生物群落组成，同时对18S rRNA、COI及ITS1区域进行测序，以此重建宿主系统发育关系。本研究采用一系列生物信息学技术对上述数据进行了分析。