Captive bottlenose dolphins and killer whales harbor a species-specific skin microbiota that varies among individuals.

ABSTRACT: Marine animals surfaces host diverse microbial communities, which play major roles for host's health. Most inventories of marine animal surface microbiota have focused on corals and fishes, while cetaceans remain overlooked. The few studies focused on wild cetaceans, making difficult to distinguish intrinsic inter- and/or intraspecific variability in skin microbiota from environmental effects. We used high-throughput sequencing to assess the skin microbiota from 4 body zones of 8 bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and killer whales (Orcinus orca), housed in captivity (Marineland park, France). Overall, cetacean skin microbiota is more diverse than planktonic communities and is dominated by different phylogenetic lineages and functions. In addition, the two cetacean species host diffe

SUBMITTER: Chiarello M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5681658 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature