Nested interactions between chemosynthetic lucinid bivalves and seagrass promote ecosystem functioning in contaminated sediments.

ABSTRACT: In seagrass sediments, lucinid bivalves and their chemoautotrophic bacterial symbionts consume H₂S, relying indirectly on the plant productivity for the presence of the reduced chemical. Additionally, the role of lucinid bivalves in N provisioning to the plant (through N₂ fixation by the symbionts) was hypothesized. Thus, lucinids may contribute to sediment detoxification and plant fitness. Seagrasses are subject to ever-increasing human pressure in coastal environments. Here, disentangling nested interactions between chemosynthetic lucinid bivalves and seagrass exposed to pollution may help to understand seagrass ecosystem dynamics and to develop successful seagrass restoration programs that consider the roles of animal-microbe symbioses. We evaluated the capacity of

SUBMITTER: Cardini U 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9355091 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature