Comparative Microbiome and Metabolome Analyses of the Marine Tunicate Ciona intestinalis from Native and Invaded Habitats.

ABSTRACT: Massive fouling by the invasive ascidian Ciona intestinalis in Prince Edward Island (PEI, Canada) has been causing devastating losses to the local blue mussel farms. In order to gain first insights into so far unexplored factors that may contribute to the invasiveness of C. intestinalis in PEI, we undertook comparative microbiome and metabolome studies on specific tissues from C. intestinalis populations collected in invaded (PEI) and native regions (Helgoland and Kiel, Germany). Microbial community analyses and untargeted metabolomics revealed clear location- and tissue-specific patterns showing that biogeography and the sampled tissue shape the microbiome and metabolome of C. intestinalis. Moreover, we observed higher microbial and chemical diversity in C.

SUBMITTER: Utermann C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7767289 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature