Open AccessTemporal variation of the microbial community associated with the mediterranean sponge Aplysina aerophoba
Author(s) -
Friedrich Anja B.,
Fischer Isabell,
Proksch Peter,
Hacker Jörg,
Hentschel Ute
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
fems microbiology ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.377
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1574-6941
pISSN - 0168-6496
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6941.2001.tb00888.x
Subject(s) - sponge , biology , seawater , microbial population biology , temperature gradient gel electrophoresis , bacteria , microorganism , contamination , clearance rate , microbiology and biotechnology , 16s ribosomal rna , ecology , botany , genetics , endocrinology
Sponges of the Aplysinidae family contain large amounts of bacteria that are embedded within the sponge tissue matrix. In order to determine the stability and specificity of the Aplysina–microbe association, sponges were maintained in recirculating seawater aquariums for 11 days. One aquarium was left untreated, a second one contained 0.45 μm filtered seawater (starvation conditions) and the third one contained 0.45 μm filtered seawater plus antibiotics (antibiotics exposure). Changes in the microbial community were monitored using group‐specific, 16S rRNA targeted oligonucleotide probes, by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and by electron microscopic observations. Furthermore, the changes in the natural product profile were monitored using high‐performance liquid chromatography. The measured parameters showed that a large fraction of the sponge‐associated microbial community could not be cleared under the given experimental conditions. Based on these cumulative results we postulate that a large fraction of sponge‐associated bacteria resides permanently in the Aplysina aerophoba mesohyl pointing to a highly integrated interaction between the host sponge and associated microorganisms.