Journal article
Spatial variability of microbial assemblages associated with a dominant habitat-forming seaweed
Frontiers in Microbiology, Vol.6, 230
2015
Abstract
Macroalgal surfaces support abundant and diverse microorganisms within biofilms, which are often involved in fundamental functions relating to the health and defense of their seaweed hosts, including algal development, facilitation of spore release, and chemical antifouling. Given these intimate and important interactions, environmental changes have the potential to negatively impact macroalgae by disrupting seaweed-microbe interactions. We used the disappearance of the dominant canopy-forming fucoid Phyllospora comosa from the metropolitan coast of Sydney, NSW, Australia as a model system to study these interactions. We transplanted Phyllospora individuals from nearby, extant populations back onto reefs in Sydney to test whether bacterial assemblages associated with seaweed surfaces would be influenced by (i) the host itself, independently of where it occurs, (ii) the type of habitat where the host occurs, or (iii) site-specific differences. Analyses of bacterial DNA fingerprints (terminal fragment length polymorphisms) indicated that assemblages of bacteria on Phyllospora were not habitat-specific. Rather, they were primarily influenced by local, site-specific conditions with some evidence for host-specificity in some cases. This could suggest a lottery model of host-surface colonization, by which hosts are colonized by 'suitable' bacteria available in the local species pool, resulting in high variability in assemblage structure across sites, but where some species in the community are specific to the host and possibly influenced by differences in host traits. © 2015 Campbell, Marzinelli, Gelber and Steinberg.
Details
- Title
- Spatial variability of microbial assemblages associated with a dominant habitat-forming seaweed
- Authors
- Alexandra H Campbell (Author) - University of New South WalesE M Marzinelli (Author) - University of New South WalesJ Gelber (Author) - University of New South WalesP D Steinberg (Author) - University of New South Wales
- Publication details
- Frontiers in Microbiology, Vol.6, 230; 10
- Publisher
- Frontiers Research Foundation
- Date published
- 2015
- DOI
- 10.3389/fmicb.2015.00230
- ISSN
- 1664-302X
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2015 Campbell, Marzinelli, Gelber and Steinberg. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Health - Biomedicine; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Health and Sport Sciences - Legacy; School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99451257602621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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