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Metagenomic insights into jellyfish-associated microbiome dynamics during strobilation
Saijun Peng1,2, Lijing Ye1, Yongxue Li1,2
1Muping Coastal Environment Research Station, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai, Shandong 264003, China.
ISME Communications
|April 4, 2024
Summary
Jellyfish microbiomes change during strobilation, with microbes potentially providing nutrients when the host stops feeding. This research explores host-microbe interactions during metamorphosis.
Area of Science:
- Marine Biology
- Microbiology
- Developmental Biology
Background:
- Host-associated microbiomes are crucial for animal metamorphosis.
- Jellyfish strobilation is a key developmental process analogous to bilaterian metamorphosis.
- Understanding jellyfish microbiomes offers insights into early metazoan-microbe associations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the taxonomic and functional shifts in the jellyfish Aurelia coerulea microbiome during strobilation.
- To investigate the potential nutritional contributions of the microbiome to the host.
- To identify microbial mechanisms for colonization in dynamic host environments.
Main Methods:
- Genome-centric analysis of associated microbiota across four life stages (polyp, early strobila, advanced strobila, ephyra).
- Metagenome-assembled genome recovery and functional annotation.
- Analysis of microbial gene abundances related to nutrient biosynthesis and host interaction.
Main Results:
- Microbial taxonomic and functional diversity varied significantly across strobilation stages.
- Low microbial diversity in the ephyra stage correlated with host antimicrobial peptide (aurelin) expression.
- Microbes showed increased gene abundance for amino acid, vitamin, and cofactor biosynthesis, and carbon fixation, supporting the host during its non-feeding phase.
- Mechanisms like secretion systems and CRISPR-Cas were identified for microbial colonization.
Conclusions:
- Jellyfish strobilation involves dynamic changes in associated microbial communities.
- The Aurelia microbiome can provide essential nutrients to the host during metamorphosis.
- This study provides a foundation for understanding ancestral host-microbe interactions during animal development.
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