Low functional change despite high taxonomic turnover characterizes the <i>Ulva</i> microbiome across a 2000-km salinity gradient.

ABSTRACT: The green seaweed Ulva relies on associated bacteria for morphogenesis and is an important model to study algal-bacterial interactions. Ulva-associated bacteria exhibit high turnover across environmental gradients, leading to the hypothesis that bacteria contribute to the acclimation potential of the host. However, the functional variation of these bacteria in relation to environmental changes remains unclear. We analyzed 91 Ulva samples across a 2000-kilometer Atlantic-Baltic Sea salinity gradient using metagenomic sequencing. Metabolic reconstruction of 639 metagenome-assembled genomes revealed widespread potential for carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and vitamin metabolism. Although the R² value for salinity explained 70% of taxonomic variation, it accoun

SUBMITTER: van der Loos LM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11740975 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature