First investigation of the environmental microbiome throughout a wild
bivalve mollusc spawning event
Abstract
The microbiome plays a key role in animal health, and is an important
aspect of any natural or farmed ecosystem. Here we present the first
environmental microbiome study of Ostrea edulis, as well as the
first of a natural wild spawning event of any oyster species. Larval
abundance was hypothesised to be correlated with specific microbial
signatures. Water samples were collected throughout a natural spawning
event of O. edulis at Loch Ryan, Scotland, UK. Samples were
collected on 4 different dates from June to September 2019, across 8
different sampling sites on the loch at mid, bottom and surface levels
within the water column to remove effects of salinity and tidal
fluctuations. Larval count data was obtained from these samples before
full-length sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene using Oxford Nanopore
Technologies. Significant microbial differences were only found between
samples collected on different dates, and not at different sites or
water column depths. Differences in the microbiome throughout the
spawning season were driven by changes in the abundance of certain taxa,
most notably those belonging to the Rhodobacteraceae family.
Inverse abundance profiles of Rhodobacteraceae and Vibrio
over time are also discussed. This study provides important microbial
baseline data about the spawning environment of O. edulis.