Diversity, host-specificity and stability of sponge-associated fungal communities of co-occurring sponges.

ABSTRACT: Fungi play a critical role in a range of ecosystems; however, their interactions and functions in marine hosts, and particular sponges, is poorly understood. Here we assess the fungal community composition of three co-occurring sponges (Cymbastela concentrica, Scopalina sp., Tedania anhelans) and the surrounding seawater over two time points to help elucidate host-specificity, stability and potential core members, which may shed light into the ecological function of fungi in sponges. The results showed that ITS-amplicon-based community profiling likely provides a more realistic assessment of fungal diversity in sponges than cultivation-dependent approaches. The sponges studied here were found to contain phylogenetically diverse fungi (eight fungal classes were observed), incl

SUBMITTER: Nguyen MTHD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5991299 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature