Introduced ascidians harbor highly diverse and host-specific symbiotic microbial assemblages.

ABSTRACT: Many ascidian species have experienced worldwide introductions, exhibiting remarkable success in crossing geographic borders and adapting to local environmental conditions. To investigate the potential role of microbial symbionts in these introductions, we examined the microbial communities of three ascidian species common in North Carolina harbors. Replicate samples of the globally introduced species Distaplia bermudensis, Polyandrocarpa anguinea, and P. zorritensis (n = 5), and ambient seawater (n = 4), were collected in Wrightsville Beach, NC. Microbial communities were characterized by next-generation (Illumina) sequencing of partial (V4) 16S rRNA gene sequences. Ascidians hosted diverse symbiont communities, consisting of 5,696 unique microbial OTUs (at 97% sequenced identity) from 47

SUBMITTER: Evans JS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5591302 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature