Microbial transcriptome profiling of black band disease in a Faviid coral during a seasonal disease peak

Arotsker, Luba; Kramarsky‐Winter, Esti; Ben‐Dov, Eitan; Kushmaro, Ariel

doi:10.3354/dao02952

Cited by 19 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…Recent advances in high-throughput sequencing technologies and bioinformatic methodologies have enabled an improved understanding of coral diseases by profiling genomes and transcriptomes of host, symbionts and potential pathogens596061. The integrated genomic approach applied in this study documented the differences in microbial function between comparatively benign CP lesions and virulent BBD lesions, providing in-depth insights into the microbial mechanisms responsible for the development and progression of BBD in corals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unraveling the microbial processes of black band disease in corals through integrated genomics

Sato

Ling

Turaev

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

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Coral disease outbreaks contribute to the ongoing degradation of reef ecosystems, however, microbial mechanisms underlying the onset and progression of most coral diseases are poorly understood. Black band disease (BBD) manifests as a cyanobacterial-dominated microbial mat that destroys coral tissues as it rapidly spreads over coral colonies. To elucidate BBD pathogenesis, we apply a comparative metagenomic and metatranscriptomic approach to identify taxonomic and functional changes within microbial lesions during in-situ development of BBD from a comparatively benign stage termed cyanobacterial patches. Results suggest that photosynthetic CO2-fixation in Cyanobacteria substantially enhances productivity of organic matter within the lesion during disease development. Photosynthates appear to subsequently promote sulfide-production by Deltaproteobacteria, facilitating the major virulence factor of BBD. Interestingly, our metagenome-enabled transcriptomic analysis reveals that BBD-associated cyanobacteria have a putative mechanism that enables them to adapt to higher levels of hydrogen sulfide within lesions, underpinning the pivotal roles of the dominant cyanobacterium within the polymicrobial lesions during the onset of BBD. The current study presents sequence-based evidence derived from whole microbial communities that unravel the mechanism of development and progression of BBD.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unraveling the microbial processes of black band disease in corals through integrated genomics

Sato

Ling

Turaev

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

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“…However, the disease etiology remains unclear due to its complex pathogenic nature (Sato et al 2016;Arotsker et al 2016). In fact, the specific members of the mat are highly variable in terms of species across geographic regions and host coral taxa (Cooney et al 2002;FriasLopez et al 2003;Myers et al 2007;Voss et al 2007;Sekar et al 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The cellular stress response of the scleractinian coral Goniopora columna during the progression of the black band disease

Seveso

Montano

Reggente

et al. 2017

Cell Stress and Chaperones

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Black band disease (BBD) is a widespread coral pathology caused by a microbial consortium dominated by cyanobacteria, which is significantly contributing to the loss of coral cover and diversity worldwide. Since the effects of the BBD pathogens on the physiology and cellular stress response of coral polyps appear almost unknown, the expression of some molecular biomarkers, such as Hsp70, Hsp60, HO-1, and MnSOD, was analyzed in the apparently healthy tissues of Goniopora columna located at different distances from the infection and during two disease development stages. All the biomarkers displayed different levels of expression between healthy and diseased colonies. In the healthy corals, low basal levels were found stable over time in different parts of the same colony. On the contrary, in the diseased colonies, a strong up-regulation of all the biomarkers was observed in all the tissues surrounding the infection, which suffered an oxidative stress probably generated by the alternation, at the progression front of the disease, of conditions of oxygen supersaturation and hypoxia/anoxia, and by the production of the cyanotoxin microcystin by the BBD cyanobacteria. Furthermore, in the infected colonies, the expression of all the biomarkers appeared significantly affected by the development stage of the disease. In conclusion, our approach may constitute a useful diagnostic tool, since the cellular stress response of corals is activated before the pathogens colonize the tissues, and expands the current knowledge of the mechanisms controlling the host responses to infection in corals.

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“…Although these genera may not be the most abundant organisms within the BBD consortium, each has the potential to impact the progression of the disease, as both Vibrio and Arcobacter are genera containing pathogens and both Arcobacter and Desulfovibrio are involved in sulfur cycling. Recent metatranscriptomic analysis of BBD consortia in the Red Sea demonstrated that the most highly expressed functional gene among BBD vibrios was a thiamin transporter (Arotsker et al, 2016), suggesting that Roseofilum , as a producer of thiamin, has the capacity to encourage the growth of vibrios that lyse coral tissue (Arotsker et al, 2009) during the colonization of adjacent healthy tissue. However, interactions between Roseofilum and vibrios are likely complex, as we previously demonstrated mutual exclusion between Roseofilum and Vibrio spp., that may be mediated through production of lyngbic acid by Roseofilum that is capable of disrupting the CAI-1 vibrio quorum-sensing pathway (Meyer et al, 2016).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative Metagenomics of the Polymicrobial Black Band Disease of Corals

et al. 2017

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Black Band Disease (BBD), the destructive microbial consortium dominated by the cyanobacterium Roseofilum reptotaenium, affects corals worldwide. While the taxonomic composition of BBD consortia has been well-characterized, substantially less is known about its functional repertoire. We sequenced the metagenomes of Caribbean and Pacific black band mats and cultured Roseofilum and obtained five metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) of Roseofilum, nine of Proteobacteria, and 12 of Bacteroidetes. Genomic content analysis suggests that Roseofilum is a source of organic carbon and nitrogen, as well as natural products that may influence interactions between microbes. Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes members of the disease consortium are suited to the degradation of amino acids, proteins, and carbohydrates. The accumulation of sulfide underneath the black band mat, in part due to a lack of sulfur oxidizers, contributes to the lethality of the disease. The presence of sulfide:quinone oxidoreductase genes in all five Roseofilum MAGs and in the MAGs of several heterotrophs demonstrates that resistance to sulfide is an important characteristic for members of the BBD consortium.

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Microbial transcriptome profiling of black band disease in a Faviid coral during a seasonal disease peak

Cited by 19 publications

References 66 publications

Unraveling the microbial processes of black band disease in corals through integrated genomics

Unraveling the microbial processes of black band disease in corals through integrated genomics

The cellular stress response of the scleractinian coral Goniopora columna during the progression of the black band disease

Comparative Metagenomics of the Polymicrobial Black Band Disease of Corals

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