| Summary: | Microbes play essential roles in the success of plants and animals, however a basic understanding of how host-associated microbial communities become assembled and are maintained across generations in commercially important marine organisms is missing. This knowledge gap prevents us from clearly elucidating how host-associated microbes respond to environmental change stressors. My dissertation fills this gap by providing essential information on the assembly, transmission, and response to environmental disturbance of oyster-associated microbial communities. I used a combination of ecological theory, field and laboratory experiments, and 16S rRNA gene sequencing to examine the microbiomes of oyster adults and larvae, as well as the microbiomes of their surrounding environment (seawater and algae feed). My dissertation demonstrates that there is a portion of the oyster microbiome that is deterministically assembled, that is passed down to the next generation, and that is closely linked to oyster response to stress. While at the same time there are different microbes within these same communities that are readily exchanged with environmental microbes and are more closely linked to physical environmental conditions, such as ocean acidification. Broadly, my work provides insight into the balance of different ecological drivers that govern host-associated microbial communities. Specifically to oysters, my work provides information about which members of the oyster microbiome may be relevant to oyster health. Overall, my dissertation work is of interest to those who investigate the ecology of host-associated microbial communities as well as the oyster aquaculture industry, valued at 12 billion USD a year, and to oyster conservation and restoration efforts that are now trying to incorporate microbiome knowledge into their methods.--Author's abstract
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