Insights into the cultured bacterial fraction of corals

Sweet, Michael; Villela, Helena; Keller‐Costa, Tina; Costa, Rodrigo; Romano, Stefano; Bourne, David G.; Cárdenas, Anny; Huggett, Megan J.; Kerwin, Allison H.; Kuek, Felicity; Medina, Mónica; Meyer, Julie; Müller, Moritz; Pollock, J. T.; Rappé, Michael S.; Séré, Mathieu G.; Sharp, Koty; Voolstra, Christian R.; Ziegler, Maren; Peixoto, Raquel S.

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-105866/v1

Cited by 10 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 80 publications

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“…The use of culture-dependent and independent methods showed that these approaches provided complementary results regarding the presence and enzymatic activity of specific CAM. Interestingly, the genera Arthrobacter, Acinetobacter, Raoutella, Virgibacillus, and Cellulomonas were detected in Ma only through culture-dependent methods, while the most abundant genus detected by molecular tools, Mycobacterium, was not isolated from Ma samples, likely due to culture media and strategy limitations [31]. In addition, Exiguobacterium sp.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, microbial strains isolated from marine ecosystems have been reported producing several types of substances with protective properties against viruses, bacteria, fungi, and tumors, as well as enzymes of industrial interest [24][25][26][27]. Among marine ecosystems, coral reefs have been highlighted as a promising target for bioprospecting for natural products, due to the diversity of macro-and micro-organisms [28][29][30][31].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The use of culture-dependent techniques, associated or not with molecular diversity surveys, remains essential to isolate and test for microbial strains with a potential ability to produce specific bioactive compounds [31], in addition to their use as probiotics [47][48][49][50][51][52][53].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring the Diversity and Biotechnological Potential of Cultured and Uncultured Coral-Associated Bacteria

et al. 2021

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Coral-associated microbes are crucial for the biology of their hosts, contributing to nutrient cycling, adaptation, mitigation of toxic compounds, and biological control of pathogens. Natural products from coral-associated micro-organisms (CAM) may possess unique traits. Despite this, the use of CAM for biotechnological purposes has not yet been adequately explored. Here, we investigated the production of commercially important enzymes by 37 strains of bacteria isolated from the coral species Mussismilia braziliensis, Millepora alcicornis, and Porites astreoides. In-vitro enzymatic assays showed that up to 56% of the isolates produced at least one of the seven enzymes screened (lipase, caseinase, keratinase, cellulase, chitinase, amylase, and gelatinase); one strain, identified as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens produced all these enzymes. Additionally, coral species-specific cultured and uncultured microbial communities were identified. The phylum Firmicutes predominated among the isolates, including the genera Exiguobacterium, Bacillus, and Halomonas, among others. Next-generation sequencing and bacteria culturing produced similar but also complementary data, with certain genera detected only by one or the other method. Our results demonstrate the importance of exploring different coral species as sources of specific micro-organisms of biotechnological and industrial interest, at the same time reinforcing the economic and ecological importance of coral reefs as reservoirs of such diversity.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring the Diversity and Biotechnological Potential of Cultured and Uncultured Coral-Associated Bacteria

et al. 2021

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“…R e v i e w s 0123456789();: immobilization of microbial cells and/or slowing their temporal release through attachment to biocompatible carriers, as well as bioencapsulation in prey or uptake through heterotrophic feeding 54,184 . Although existing genetic engineering techniques are easily applied to bacterial isolates derived from corals, they should be restricted to a laboratory context, as the effects that such altered genetic variants could exhibit in the highly complex and diverse coral reef environment (for example, interaction with pathogens) are unknown [185][186][187] . Accordingly, coral microbiome manipulative approaches at reef sites should focus on utilization of microbes (bacteria) from the native environment.…”

Section: Nature Reviews | Earth and Environmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extending the natural adaptive capacity of coral holobionts

Voolstra

Suggett

Peixoto

et al. 2021

Nat Rev Earth Environ

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Tropical coral reefs cover only 0.1% of the seafloor yet provide habitat for >30% of all marine multicellular species 1 . Ecosystem services delivered through healthy tropical reefs are economically valued at around US $9,900,000 million per year 2 and sustain almost a billion people [3][4][5] . Despite their importance, catastrophic global loss of coral reefs owing to anthropogenic activity is fast becoming a reality 6 . For example, the 2015-2018 global coral bleaching event affected 74% of reefs worldwide, with >30% of coral cover lost on the Great Barrier Reef alone 7 . Additionally, coral cover in the Florida Reef Tract has declined by upwards of 90% over the last 50 years [8][9][10][11] .A global contributing factor to reef degradation is coral bleaching 12,13 . Without their microalgal symbionts (Fig. 1), corals lose their primary source of nutrition, leading to starvation, reduced fecundity, and reduced growth, often resulting in widespread coral mortality 14,15 . Trajectories for coral reefs under present CO 2 emission scenarios are dire, with 60% of all remaining coral reefs critically threatened, and 98% exposed to environmental conditions above the current thresholds considered necessary to maintain ecosystem function as soon as 2030 (reF. 16 ). The impact of ocean warming is exacerbated by the effects of ocean acidification 17 , deoxygenation 18 , and salinity changes 19 . Combined with local factors such as overfishing, coastal development, disturbance of the nutrient environment (water quality), and disease or predator outbreaks, the interrelated cumulative impacts all contribute to reduction in coral cover and declining reef ecosystem health [20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27] .Given the rate and extent at which climate change unfolds 28 , a widespread and shared concern is that the rate of environmental change could outpace the ability of coral holobionts to adapt to the changing environment 29 , concomitant with the increasing loss of coral reef cover 30 . Global mitigation of CO 2 emissions is unquestionably needed to stem the rate of declining reef health [30][31][32] . However, biological, ecological and socio-economic adaptations are critical partners to preserve reefs and delay the loss of coral populations until carbon mitigation is effectively implemented 30 . Reef protection through Marine Protected Areas and management practices reduces how local stressors compound global climate change impacts 27,31 . Nevertheless, the current state of reefs and their predicted further decline have sparked initiatives to prioritize reefs or corals that are less vulnerable to climate change and best positioned for regenerating other degraded reefs in the future [33][34][35] . Coral bleachingDiscolouration of coral tissue due to the loss of microalgal symbionts triggered by climate change-induced ocean warming and thermal stress anomalies.

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“…Finally, culture-based approaches will allow source tracking of microbial partners, and a rapid boom in microfluidics-based approaches now enables isolation of the unculturable bacteria ( 21 ). In this respect, a central repository of coral-isolated microbes has been proposed with the goal of development of coral probiotics, but currently no databases exist for coral-associated bacterial metabolomes ( 22 ). The marine environment is a significant source of the coral microbiome.…”

Section: Omics Approaches In Holobiont Sciencementioning

confidence: 99%