Using Next Generation Sequencing to Quantify the Symbiotic Prokaryotic Communities of the Coral Montastraea cavernosa and the Response of the Holobiont to Thermal Stress

University Of New Hampshire, Durham NH

Investigators

Abstract

Intellectual Merit: There is much to be learned about the roles of prokaryotic microbes (bacteria and archaea) in the physiology, biochemistry, and ecology of reef-forming corals. The importance of greater understanding of prokaryote associations has become especially evident because it is now known that many corals harbor endosymbiotic prokaryotes with multiple, significant effects on coral biology. This project will assess how different prokaryotic communities affect the biogeochemistry of nitrogen within the coral, and how these microbial communities, and the functions they carry out, are affected by global climate change. To accomplish this, the latest high-throughput-sequencing (metagenomic and metatranscriptomic) tools will be used to examine the taxonomic and functional diversity of these symbioses in a model coral from the Caribbean, Montastraea cavernosa. Proposed experiments will elucidate the effects of thermal stress on these prokaryotic communities, as well as the coral host and symbiotic dinoflagellates (i.e., zooxanthellae) from individual corals. The bioinformatic analysis of the sequence data from this project will result in the discovery of novel prokaryotes and increase our understanding of the taxonomic and functional biodiversity of prokaryotes in corals. Broader Impacts: The particular metatranscriptomic approach described in this project is novel in its application to corals and their multiple symbionts and could be an important advance in applying molecular techniques to the study of corals. This project will also support the research activities of both undergraduate and graduate students who will work closely with the principal investigators on their individualized research projects. Both the investigators and students supported on this project will also engage in public outreach events to provide environmental education lectures about the ecology and conservation of coral reefs.