The microbiome of marine sponges located on the Saudi Arabia coast of the Red sea using high-throughput 16S amplicon sequencing.

ABSTRACT: Marine sponges (Porifera) from the Red Sea host diverse microbial communities that are integral to sponge health, nutrient cycling, and ecological resilience. Using high-throughput 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, we characterized the bacterial diversity and functional potential across several Red Sea sponge species. Our findings revealed that these microbiomes are dominated by Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, and Roseobacteraceae, with notable contributions from bacterial taxa involved in nitrogen fixation, organic matter degradation, and antimicrobial compound production. Functional predictions indicate that these symbionts support sponge nutrition, defense, and adaptation to the extreme Red Sea environment, including high salinity and temperature. Compared to sponge microbiomes fr

SUBMITTER: Abuzahrah SS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12572514 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature