Yang Qianxi, Zhang Han, Qiu Jian-Wen, Huang Dingyong, Zhou Xijie, Zheng Xinqing
Key Laboratory of Marine Ecology Conservation and Restoration, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, China.
Observation and Research Station of Wetland Ecosystems in the Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Natural Resources, Beihai, China.
Environ Microbiome. 2025 Jun 17;20(1):72. doi: 10.1186/s40793-025-00733-2.
The coral-associated microbiome plays a vital role in the holobiont, enabling coral adaptation to diverse environments by modulating its composition and mediating interactions among its constituents. However, the responses of coral microbiomes, particularly the interactions between Symbiodiniaceae and bacteria, to environmental changes remain unclear. To fill this knowledge gap, we examined Pocillopora acuta, an environmentally sensitive coral species, collected from three sites along the southeastern coast of Hainan which exhibit moderate environmental differences. We measured the physiological characteristics of Symbiodiniaceae and conducted amplicon sequencing to analyze the structure of Symbiodiniaceae and bacterial communities. Our results revealed that P. acuta in southeastern Hainan maintains stable symbiosis with Symbiodiniaceae sub-clades such as C1, C42.1, C3, D1, D4, and D6, as evidenced by ΔF/Fm' values ranging from 0.45 for P. acuta dominated by Durusdinium (PaD) to 0.6 for counterparts dominated by Cladocopium (PaC). However, the composition of Symbiodiniaceae varied among the three sites, primarily due to differences in the abundance of dominant sub-clades. These variations may reflect adaptations to distinct environmental conditions, which in turn significantly influence the associated bacterial communities. Notably, our results suggest that Symbiodiniaceae may exert a greater regulatory role on the coral-associated bacterial community than environmental differences. Specific bacteria, such as Endozoicomonas and Synechococcus_CC9902, exhibit strong correlations with particular Symbiodiniaceae genera or sub-clades, indicating that the dominant Symbiodiniaceae shape bacterial community dynamics. Despite the observed variations, we identified modular co-occurrence patterns in bacterial networks, with PaC exhibiting a more complex and stable structure. Overall, these results highlight the critical role of various Symbiodiniaceae genera in influencing bacterial community dynamics, emphasizing their importance in maintaining coral health and resilience in the face of changing environmental conditions.
与珊瑚相关的微生物群落在珊瑚虫黄藻共生体中起着至关重要的作用，通过调节其组成和介导其组成部分之间的相互作用，使珊瑚能够适应各种环境。然而，珊瑚微生物群的反应，特别是虫黄藻与细菌之间的相互作用，对环境变化的响应仍不清楚。为了填补这一知识空白，我们研究了尖枝蔷薇珊瑚，这是一种对环境敏感的珊瑚物种，采集自海南东南沿海的三个地点，这些地点表现出适度的环境差异。我们测量了虫黄藻的生理特征，并进行了扩增子测序，以分析虫黄藻和细菌群落的结构。我们的结果表明，海南东南部的尖枝蔷薇珊瑚与虫黄藻亚分支如C1、C42.1、C3、D1、D4和D6保持稳定的共生关系，以ΔF/Fm'值为例，由杜氏藻主导的尖枝蔷薇珊瑚（PaD）的ΔF/Fm'值为0.45，而由枝粒藻主导的尖枝蔷薇珊瑚（PaC）的ΔF/Fm'值为0.6。然而，三个地点的虫黄藻组成各不相同，主要是由于优势亚分支丰度的差异。这些变化可能反映了对不同环境条件的适应，进而显著影响相关细菌群落。值得注意的是，我们的结果表明，虫黄藻对与珊瑚相关的细菌群落的调节作用可能比环境差异更大。特定的细菌，如内共生单胞菌和聚球藻_CC9902，与特定的虫黄藻属或亚分支表现出强烈的相关性，表明优势虫黄藻塑造了细菌群落动态。尽管观察到了变化，但我们在细菌网络中确定了模块化共现模式，PaC表现出更复杂和稳定的结构。总体而言，这些结果突出了各种虫黄藻属在影响细菌群落动态方面的关键作用，强调了它们在面对不断变化的环境条件时对维持珊瑚健康和恢复力的重要性。
