The effects of environment and ontogeny on the skin microbiome of two Stegastes damselfishes (Pomacentridae) from the eastern Caribbean Sea

Xavier, Raquel; Pereira, Ana; Pagan, Andres; Hendrick, Gina C.; Nicholson, Matthew D.; Rosado, Daniela; Soares, Marta C.; Pérez‐Losada, Marcos; Sikkel, Paul C.

doi:10.1007/s00227-020-03717-7

Cited by 18 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…We, thus, conclude that growth and sexual maturation are likely the main drivers of the differences found herein. Overall, our results were in line with what has been previously found in the skin [35,36] and gill [14,36] microbiomes of several wild reef sh, suggesting this could be a general pattern across sh. Our results also highlight the importance of considering sexual maturation as a key factor shaping external sh mucosa microbiomes, especially in studies focusing on farmed sh, where the microbiome and disease dynamics can be very important.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…The differences found in the present study in microbiome structure across age groups, which were consistently signi cant in both species, have been already reported in other sh (e.g., several reef sh [14,35]; Salmo salar [19]), mainly in longitudinal studies several months long [13,17,20].…”

Section: Microbiome Diversity Across Age Groupssupporting

confidence: 87%

“…34]. Two previous studies in wild reef sh comparing the gill [14] and skin [35] microbiomes of juvenile and mature adult sh from several species, showed a general pattern of differentiation between life-stages with the differences being attributed to intraspeci c niche partitioning [14,35]. Additionally, increases in body weight were seen to be associated with an increase in the microbiome structure (i.e.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

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Characterization of the skin and gill microbiomes in farmed seabass and seabream across different age groups

Rosado

Pérez‐Losada

Pereira

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background Important changes in microbiome composition related to sexual maturation have been already reported in the gut of several vertebrates including mammals, amphibians and fish. Such changes in fish are linked to reproduction and growth during developmental stages, diet transitions and critical life events. We used amplicon (16S rRNA) high-throughput sequencing to characterize the skin and gill bacterial microbiomes of farmed seabass and seabream belonging to three different developmental age groups: early and late juveniles and mature adults. We also assessed the impact of the surrounding estuarine water microbiome in shaping the fish skin and gill microbiomes.Results Microbiome diversity, composition and potential metabolic functions varied across fish maturity stages. Alpha-diversity in the seabass microbiome varied significantly between age groups and was higher in older fish. Conversely, in the seabream, no significant differences were found in alpha diversity between age groups, although it was higher in the skin of juveniles. Microbiome structure varied significantly across age groups. Different bacterial metabolic pathways were predicted to be enriched in the microbiomes of both species. Finally, we found that the water microbiome is significantly distinct from all the fish microbiomes across the studied age groups, although a high percentage of ASVs is shared with the skin and gill microbiomes.Conclusions We report important microbial differences in composition and potential functionality across the different ages of farmed seabass and seabream. These differences may be related to somatic growth and the onset of sexual maturation. Importantly, some of the inferred metabolic pathways could enhance the host coping mechanisms during stressful conditions. Our results provide new evidence suggesting that growth and sexual maturation have an important role in shaping the external mucosa microbiomes of fish and highlight the importance of considering different life stages in microbiome studies.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Microbiome Diversity Across Age Groupssupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

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Characterization of the skin and gill microbiomes in farmed seabass and seabream across different age groups

Rosado

Pérez‐Losada

Pereira

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

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show abstract

“…The differences found in the present study in microbial structure across age groups, which were consistently signi cant in both species, have been already reported in other sh (e.g., several reef sh [14,35]; Salmo salar [19]), being particularly evident in longitudinal studies encompassing several months [13,17,20]. when fed a protein-de cient diet, suggesting a metabolic role of the gut microbiota towards sh nutrition [56].…”

Section: Microbial Diversity Across Age Groupssupporting

confidence: 85%

“…34]. Two previous studies in wild reef sh comparing the gill [14] and skin [35] microbiota of juvenile and mature adult sh from several species, showed a general pattern of differentiation between life-stages with differences attributed to intraspeci c niche partitioning [14,35]. Additionally, increases in body weight were seen to be associated with an increase in the microbial structure (i.e.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Effects of aging on the skin and gill microbiota of farmed seabass and seabream

Rosado

Pérez‐Losada

Pereira

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Important changes in microbioal composition related to sexual maturation have been already reported in the gut of several vertebrates including mammals, amphibians and fish. Such changes in fish are linked to reproduction and growth during developmental stages, diet transitions and critical life events. We used amplicon (16S rRNA) high-throughput sequencing to characterize the skin and gill bacterial microbiota of farmed seabass and seabream belonging to three different developmental age groups: early and late juveniles and mature adults. We also assessed the impact of the surrounding estuarine water microbiota in shaping the fish skin and gill microbiota. Results: Microbial diversity, composition and potential metabolic functions varied across fish maturity stages. Alpha-diversity in the seabass microbiota varied significantly between age groups and was higher in older fish. Conversely, in the seabream, no significant differences were found in alpha diversity between age groups. Microbial structure varied significantly across age groups; moreover, high structural variation was also observed within groups. Different bacterial metabolic pathways were predicted to be enriched in the microbiota of both species. Finally, we found that the water microbiota is significantly distinct from all the fish microbiota across the studied age groups, although a high percentage of ASVs is shared with the skin and gill microbiota. Conclusions: We report important microbial differences in composition and potential functionality across the different ages of farmed seabass and seabream. These differences may be related to somatic growth and the onset of sexual maturation. Importantly, some of the inferred metabolic pathways could enhance the host coping mechanisms during stressful conditions. Our results provide new evidence suggesting that growth and sexual maturation have an important role in shaping the external mucosa microbiota of fish and highlight the importance of considering different life stages in microbiota studies.

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Effects of two common antibiotics on the skin microbiome of ornamental reef fishes: Implications for manipulative experiments in microbial dynamics

Pereira,

Brown,

Strobel

et al. 2024

Aquaculture Fish & Fisheries

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An understanding of the mechanistic drivers of animal‐microbial symbiosis and associations generally requires experiments that manipulate specific symbionts or microbial communities. As part of an ongoing study of the mechanisms that drive microbial communities in coral reef fishes, and specifically the role of cleanerfish in microbial transmission, we tested the effects of the commonly used antibiotics Enrofloxacin and Nitrofurazone on the skin microbiome of three ornamental reef fish species: the four‐eyed butterflyfish, Chaetodon capistratus (Chaetodontidae), the cleanerfish neon goby Elacatinus oceanops (Gobiidae) and the beaugregory damselfish Stegastes leucostictus (Pomacentridae). Our main aim was to characterize dysbiosis prompted by the delivery of the two antibiotics and understand whether both could be used to establish good starting points for microbial transmission experiments. We bathed the fish in antibiotic (or no exposure in the controls), sampled the skin microbiota via swabbing at zero (before treatment) and 3 and 7 days during the treatments, and examined the microbial community using a 16S rRNA gene sequencing approach. Nitrofurazone reduced skin‐associated microbial diversity in all species, whereas the same effect for Enrofloxacin was only seen in S. leucostictus. Although each antibiotic had its own, unique impact in microbial community, all treatments showed positive and negative shifts in the most abundant microbial taxa over time. Moreover, soon after the delivery of both antibiotics, increases in the abundance of opportunistic bacteria or potential pathogens, such as Alteromonas and Vibrio, were observed. Although both antibiotics are effective, Nitrofurazone more successfully reduces microbial diversity and therefore may be more ideal for experiments seeking to disrupt fish microbiomes.

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The effects of environment and ontogeny on the skin microbiome of two Stegastes damselfishes (Pomacentridae) from the eastern Caribbean Sea

Cited by 18 publications

References 59 publications

Characterization of the skin and gill microbiomes in farmed seabass and seabream across different age groups

Characterization of the skin and gill microbiomes in farmed seabass and seabream across different age groups

Effects of aging on the skin and gill microbiota of farmed seabass and seabream

Effects of two common antibiotics on the skin microbiome of ornamental reef fishes: Implications for manipulative experiments in microbial dynamics

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