The Microbiome of the Eastern Oyster, Crassostrea Virginica, in Health, Disease and Environmental Stress ...

• Main Author: Zahorik, Amanda
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: University of Delaware 2023
• Subjects: Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.58088/2ef2-wa51; https://udspace.udel.edu/handle/19716/33875

The Easter oyster, Crassostrea virginica, is an ecologically and economically important species native to the bays and estuaries all along the western Atlantic. However, it has declined to <10% of its pre-industrial numbers and faces further decline due to a combination of overharvesting, habitat destruction, climate change and disease. While efforts have been made to restore the population, a lack of knowledge about the oyster’s genetics and physiology presents an ongoing barrier to restoration. We turned to the microbiome present in the oyster’s extrapallial fluid (EPF) to learn more about this animal’s health and fitness, particularly in light of environmental stress including ocean acidification. Through a combination of marker gene and bacterial metatranscriptome sequencing, we found that the extrapallial fluid harbors a rich core bacterial community which is distinct from the surrounding water and plays potential roles in shell calcification and in pollutant bioremediation and nutrient (C, N, S) ...