A growing number of studies have provided insights into the diversity of coral-associated bacteria and their function in the coral holobiont. Yet, information about spatial heterogeneity of bacteria within coral colonies is limited. Using 16S rRNA gene metabarcoding, we analyzed the bacterial community composition across four distinct locations in each of five wild Acropora loripes colonies. Considerable variation within and among colonies was present, which has implications for sampling strategies and data interpretation in coral microbiome research. Bacterial assemblages significantly differed in alpha and beta diversity among colonies, with all corals possessing a high relative abundance of Endozoicomonas. When the same A. loripes colonies were subsequently reared in aquaria over 4 weeks, the relative abundance of Marinobacter initially increased in all colonies. However, no significant alteration in bacterial community composition was observed over time and the colonies maintained distinct bacterial microbiomes.

中文翻译：

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野生和圈养鹿角菌群落内部和之间的细菌群落组成评估

越来越多的研究为珊瑚相关细菌的多样性及其在珊瑚全生物中的功能提供了见解。然而，关于珊瑚菌落内细菌空间异质性的信息是有限的。使用 16S rRNA 基因宏条形码，我们分析了五个野生鹿角珊瑚菌落中每一个的四个不同位置的细菌群落组成。菌落内和菌落之间存在相当大的差异，这对珊瑚微生物组研究中的采样策略和数据解释有影响。菌落中的细菌组合在 α 和β 多样性方面存在显着差异，所有珊瑚都具有相对丰度较高的内生单胞菌。当相同的 A. loripes 菌落随后在水族箱中饲养超过 4 周时，Marinobacter 的相对丰度最初在所有菌落中都有所增加。然而，随着时间的推移，没有观察到细菌群落组成的显着变化，菌落保持着不同的细菌微生物群落。