Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic Environment
Coral reefs thrive in nutrients-poor waters, and their survival strategy in such oligotrophic marine environments remains largely unexplored. Current coral research has focused on the interplay between the animal hosts, symbiotic Symbiodiniaceae, and associated bacteria, with little attention given...
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/4/748 |
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| author | Yawen Liu Yanying Hua Yan Yi Jicai Liu Pengcheng Fu |
| author_facet | Yawen Liu Yanying Hua Yan Yi Jicai Liu Pengcheng Fu |
| author_sort | Yawen Liu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Coral reefs thrive in nutrients-poor waters, and their survival strategy in such oligotrophic marine environments remains largely unexplored. Current coral research has focused on the interplay between the animal hosts, symbiotic Symbiodiniaceae, and associated bacteria, with little attention given to their individual interactions. Here, we integrated biochemical, transcriptomic, and metabonomic analyses of the clade D Symbiodiniaceae strain AG11 to investigate the growth-assisting mechanisms of symbiotic bacteria. Our findings indicate that metabolic trophallaxis between Symbiodiniaceae and symbiotic bacteria plays a crucial role in enhancing survival and population growth under nitrogen-depleted conditions, commonly found in typical coral habitats. Notably, the exchange of organic compounds between Symbiodiniaceae and bacteria significantly boosts nitrogen uptake in their free-living state. Furthermore, we demonstrated how beneficial bacteria influence the survival of Symbiodiniaceae in response to environmental changes, which are vital for coping with nitrogen-depleted conditions where coral reefs are particularly vulnerable. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-bde78b13dc1e43349f86ba48dfa30180 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj-art-bde78b13dc1e43349f86ba48dfa301802025-08-20T03:13:32ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072025-03-0113474810.3390/microorganisms13040748Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic EnvironmentYawen Liu0Yanying Hua1Yan Yi2Jicai Liu3Pengcheng Fu4School of Life and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hainan University, 58 Renmin Avenue, Haikou 570228, ChinaSchool of Life and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hainan University, 58 Renmin Avenue, Haikou 570228, ChinaSchool of Life and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hainan University, 58 Renmin Avenue, Haikou 570228, ChinaSchool of Life and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hainan University, 58 Renmin Avenue, Haikou 570228, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Marine Resource Utilization in South China Sea, Hainan University, 58 Renmin Avenue, Haikou 570228, ChinaCoral reefs thrive in nutrients-poor waters, and their survival strategy in such oligotrophic marine environments remains largely unexplored. Current coral research has focused on the interplay between the animal hosts, symbiotic Symbiodiniaceae, and associated bacteria, with little attention given to their individual interactions. Here, we integrated biochemical, transcriptomic, and metabonomic analyses of the clade D Symbiodiniaceae strain AG11 to investigate the growth-assisting mechanisms of symbiotic bacteria. Our findings indicate that metabolic trophallaxis between Symbiodiniaceae and symbiotic bacteria plays a crucial role in enhancing survival and population growth under nitrogen-depleted conditions, commonly found in typical coral habitats. Notably, the exchange of organic compounds between Symbiodiniaceae and bacteria significantly boosts nitrogen uptake in their free-living state. Furthermore, we demonstrated how beneficial bacteria influence the survival of Symbiodiniaceae in response to environmental changes, which are vital for coping with nitrogen-depleted conditions where coral reefs are particularly vulnerable.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/4/748coral-associated bacterianitrogen sourceorganic compoundsSymbiodiniaceaetrophallaxis |
| spellingShingle | Yawen Liu Yanying Hua Yan Yi Jicai Liu Pengcheng Fu Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic Environment Microorganisms coral-associated bacteria nitrogen source organic compounds Symbiodiniaceae trophallaxis |
| title | Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic Environment |
| title_full | Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic Environment |
| title_fullStr | Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic Environment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic Environment |
| title_short | Coral-Associated Bacteria Provide Alternative Nitrogen Source for Symbiodiniaceae Growth in Oligotrophic Environment |
| title_sort | coral associated bacteria provide alternative nitrogen source for symbiodiniaceae growth in oligotrophic environment |
| topic | coral-associated bacteria nitrogen source organic compounds Symbiodiniaceae trophallaxis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/4/748 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT yawenliu coralassociatedbacteriaprovidealternativenitrogensourceforsymbiodiniaceaegrowthinoligotrophicenvironment AT yanyinghua coralassociatedbacteriaprovidealternativenitrogensourceforsymbiodiniaceaegrowthinoligotrophicenvironment AT yanyi coralassociatedbacteriaprovidealternativenitrogensourceforsymbiodiniaceaegrowthinoligotrophicenvironment AT jicailiu coralassociatedbacteriaprovidealternativenitrogensourceforsymbiodiniaceaegrowthinoligotrophicenvironment AT pengchengfu coralassociatedbacteriaprovidealternativenitrogensourceforsymbiodiniaceaegrowthinoligotrophicenvironment |