Acquisition of a Novel Sulfur-Oxidizing Symbiont in the Gutless Marine Worm Inanidrilus exumae.

ABSTRACT: Gutless phallodrilines are marine annelid worms without a mouth or gut, which live in an obligate association with multiple bacterial endosymbionts that supply them with nutrition. In this study, we discovered an unusual symbiont community in the gutless phallodriline Inanidrilus exumae that differs markedly from the microbiomes of all 22 of the other host species examined. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis and fluorescence in situ hybridization revealed that I. exumae harbors cooccurring gamma-, alpha-, and deltaproteobacterial symbionts, while all other known host species harbor gamma- and either alpha- or deltaproteobacterial symbionts. Surprisingly, the primary chemoautotrophic sulfur oxidizer "Candidatus Thiosymbion" that occurs in all other gutle

SUBMITTER: Bergin C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5861843 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature