| Endozoicomonas gorgoniicola | |
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| Species: | E. gorgoniicola |
| Binomial name | |
| Endozoicomonas gorgoniicola Pike, Haltli, and Kerr 2013 [1] | |
| Type strain | |
| PS125 | |
Endozoicomonas gorgoniicola is a Gram-negative and facultative anaerobic bacterium from the genus of Endozoicomonas . Individual cells are motile and rod-shaped. [2] [3] Bacteria in this genus are symbionts of coral. [2] E. gorgoniicola live specifically with soft coral (family Gorgoniidae ) and were originally isolated from a species of Plexaura , an octocoral, [1] off the coast of Bimini in the Bahamas. The presence of this bacterium in a coral microbiome is associated with coral health. [4] [5]
E. gorgoniicola is a gram-negative cell, characterized by the outer and inner membranes that enclose a thin layer of peptidoglycan. [6] Cells are typically rod-shaped, and are about 1.7-2.5μm long (average 2.0μm) and 0.4-0.9μm in diameter (average 0.7μm). [1] [2] E. gorgoniicola possess flagella that allow for motility. When the bacterium is plated on marine agar, colonies form creamy white circles 0.5-1mm in diameter. [1]
As with most microorganisms, E. gorgoniicola inhabits microhabitats along small scale abiotic gradients within a larger organism. This species is found in species of in the genus Plexaura , a rod shaped soft coral. Many Endozoicomonas species are found in multiple coral hosts, but E. gorgoniicola has only been isolated in Plexaura. Coral-associated bacteria inhabit the exoskeleton, in the tissues, and in mucus that covers the surface of coral polyps. [7] [8] [4] The mucus layer is a unique and important feature of coral; it protects the polyp from unwanted pathogens and nutrients. Most of the anti-pathogenic properties of mucus come from bacteria, including Endozoicomonas species. [1] The internal microhabitats of coral are also inhabited by endosymbiotic microalgal dinoflagellates in the family Symbiodiniaceae. Bacteria and these microalgal cells are harbored in the gastrodermis and form a symbiotic relationship by recycling nutrients. [4] [7]
In the ocean, E. gorgoniicola can grow at a range of temperatures anywhere from 15-30°C. Cells will grow, albeit slowly, at salt concentrations above 4% and below 1%. As an endosymbiotic organism, E. gorgoniicola utilizes nutrients that the associated microalgal dinoflagellates produce from photosynthesis. E. gorgoniicola can use the photosynthate as an energy source, but more importantly, bacteria break down secondary compounds that the coral and microalgae produce as waste, such as dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP). [1] Without this symbiosis, toxic waste products would build up within the polyp.
Optimum growth of E. gorgoniicola occurs at 22-30 °C and pH 8.0. The salt content must be 2-3% NaCl, [1] which is slightly lower than ocean salinity - seawater is generally 3.5% NaCl, or 35 parts per thousand. [9] Growth occurs on marine agar 2216. In culture, E. gorgoniicola utilizes sugars such as lactose, maltose, D-mannose, and glycerol as a carbon source anaerobic respiration. It is a facultative aerobic organism and can switch to fermentation when oxygen is absent. [1] These bacteria are not able to reduce nitrate, which is a function crucial to coral health; however, E. gorgoniicola contribute to the symbiosis through sulfate reduction.
The 16S rRNA regions of DNA from pure E. gorgoniicola colonies were sequenced and found to be novel strains of Endozoicomonas. DNA can be extracted from this species using the eubacterial 16S rRNA gene primers 27F (5'-AGAGTTTGATCCTGGCTCAG-3') and 1525R (5'AAGGAGGTGATCCAGCC-3'). It is closely related to the previously named E. elysicola, as well as E. montiporae and E. numazuensis. All are isolated from gorgonian (soft) corals. [1] As of 2018, 1556 base pairs of rRNA have been sequenced from the E. gorgoniicola genome. [10] The related species E. montiporae has a genome of about 5.4 million base pairs, [11] and functions similarly to E. gorgoniicola, suggesting they may have a similar sized genome.
An endosymbiont or endobiont is any organism that lives within the body or cells of another organism most often, though not always, in a mutualistic relationship. (The term endosymbiosis is from the Greek: ἔνδον endon "within", σύν syn "together" and βίωσις biosis "living".) Examples are nitrogen-fixing bacteria, which live in the root nodules of legumes, single-cell algae inside reef-building corals and bacterial endosymbionts that provide essential nutrients to insects.
Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.
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Anthozoa is a class of marine invertebrates which includes the sea anemones, stony corals and soft corals. Adult anthozoans are almost all attached to the seabed, while their larvae can disperse as part of the plankton. The basic unit of the adult is the polyp; this consists of a cylindrical column topped by a disc with a central mouth surrounded by tentacles. Sea anemones are mostly solitary, but the majority of corals are colonial, being formed by the budding of new polyps from an original, founding individual. Colonies are strengthened by calcium carbonate and other materials and take various massive, plate-like, bushy or leafy forms.
Symbiotic bacteria are bacteria living in symbiosis with another organism or each other. For example, rhizobia living in root nodules of legumes provide nitrogen fixing activity for these plants.
Alcyonacea are a species of sessile colonial cnidarians that are found throughout the oceans of the world, especially in the deep sea, polar waters, tropics and subtropics. Whilst not in a strict taxonomic sense, Alcyonacea are commonly known as "soft corals" (Octocorallia) that are quite different from "true" corals (Scleractinia). The term “soft coral” generally applies to organisms in the two orders Pennatulacea and Alcyonacea with their polyps embedded within a fleshy mass of coenenchymal tissue. Consequently, the term “gorgonian coral” is commonly handed to multiple species in the order Alcyonacea that produce a mineralized skeletal axis composed of calcite and the proteinaceous material gorgonin only and corresponds to only one of several families within the formally accepted taxon Gorgoniidae (Scleractinia). These can be found in order Malacalcyonacea (taxonomic synonyms of include : Alcyoniina, Holaxonia, Protoalcyonaria, Scleraxonia, and Stolonifera. They are sessile colonial cnidarians that are found throughout the oceans of the world, especially in the deep sea, polar waters, tropics and subtropics. Common names for subsets of this order are sea fans and sea whips; others are similar to the sea pens of related order Pennatulacea. Individual tiny polyps form colonies that are normally erect, flattened, branching, and reminiscent of a fan. Others may be whiplike, bushy, or even encrusting. A colony can be several feet high and across, but only a few inches thick. They may be brightly coloured, often purple, red, or yellow. Photosynthetic gorgonians can be successfully kept in captive aquaria.
Octocorallia is a class of Anthozoa comprising around 3,000 species of water-based organisms formed of colonial polyps with 8-fold symmetry. It includes the blue coral, soft corals, sea pens, and gorgonians within three orders: Alcyonacea, Helioporacea, and Pennatulacea. These organisms have an internal skeleton secreted by mesoglea and polyps with eight tentacles and eight mesentaries. As with all Cnidarians these organisms have a complex life cycle including a motile phase when they are considered plankton and later characteristic sessile phase.
Plexaura is a genus of gorgonian-type octocorals in the family Plexauridae.
Primnoa(Lamororux, 1812) also known as red tree coral, is a genus of soft corals and the type genus of the family Primnoidae (Milne Edwards, 1857). They are sessile, benthic cnidarians that can be found in the North Pacific, North Atlantic, and Subantarctic South Pacific, and its members often play a vital ecological role as keystone species within their environment as a habitat and refuge for the megafauna that also inhabit those regions. This, in combination with their slow growth, makes the increasing disturbance to their habitats caused by fishing activities particularly impactful and difficult to recover from.
Deinococcus marmoris is a Gram-positive bacterium isolated from Antarctica. As a species of the genus Deinococcus, the bacterium is UV-tolerant and able to withstand low temperatures.
Paragorgia arborea is a species of coral in the family Paragorgiidae, commonly known as the bubblegum coral because of its bulbous branch tips. It mainly grows in depths between 200 and 1,300 metres at temperatures between 3 and 8 °C. It is found widespread in the Northern Atlantic Ocean and Northern Pacific Ocean on seamounts and knolls, and was first described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. P. arborea is a foundation species, providing a habitat for other species in deep sea coral ecosystems.
Paramuricea clavata, the violescent sea-whip, is a species of colonial soft coral in the family Plexauridae. It is found in shallow seas of the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean and the north-western Mediterranean Sea as well as Ionian Sea. This species was first described by the French naturalist Antoine Risso in 1826.
A microbiome is the community of microorganisms that can usually be found living together in any given habitat. It was defined more precisely in 1988 by Whipps et al. as "a characteristic microbial community occupying a reasonably well-defined habitat which has distinct physio-chemical properties. The term thus not only refers to the microorganisms involved but also encompasses their theatre of activity". In 2020, an international panel of experts published the outcome of their discussions on the definition of the microbiome. They proposed a definition of the microbiome based on a revival of the "compact, clear, and comprehensive description of the term" as originally provided by Whipps et al., but supplemented with two explanatory paragraphs. The first explanatory paragraph pronounces the dynamic character of the microbiome, and the second explanatory paragraph clearly separates the term microbiota from the term microbiome.
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