Heatwave-driven persistent microbes threaten the resilience of Mediterranean coral holobionts.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The climate crisis poses a serious threat to octocorals in the Mediterranean Sea as marine heatwaves (MHWs) not only impair coral metabolism but also disrupt the complex symbiosis between the coral host and its microbiome. Since octocorals are the foundation species of the Mediterranean animal forests, understanding their resilience, i.e. ability to recover and survive to MHWs, is crucial to predict their viability under future climatic conditions. Using amplification of 16 S and 18 S rRNA genes for metabarcoding and qPCR analyses to follow the changes in bacterial microbiome and eukaryome as well as host response under stress and recovery conditions, this study provides the first comprehensive assessment of the resilience of an iconic Mediterranean octocoral (the red co

SUBMITTER: Prioux C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12369214 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature