title: Bacterial Community Associated with Organs of Shallow Hydrothermal Vent Crab Xenograpsus testudinatus near Kuishan Island, Taiwan.
abstract: Shallow-water hydrothermal vents off Kueishan Island (northeastern Taiwan) provide a unique, sulfur-rich, highly acidic (pH 1.75-4.6) and variable-temperature environment. In this species-poor habitat, the crab Xenograpsus testudinatus is dominant, as it mainly feeds on zooplankton killed by sulfurous plumes. In this study, 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon pyrosequencing was used to investigate diversity and composition of bacteria residing in digestive gland, gill, stomach, heart, and mid-gut of X. testudinatus, as well as in surrounding seawater. Dominant bacteria were Gamma- and Epsilonproteobacteria that might be capable of autotrophic growth by oxidizing reduced sulfur compounds and are usually resident in deep-sea hydrothermal systems. Dominant bacterial OTUs in X. testudinatus had both host and potential organ specificities, consistent with a potential trophic symbiotic relationship (nutrient transfer between host and bacteria). We inferred that versatile ways to obtain nutrients may provide an adaptive advantage for X. testudinatus in this demanding environment. To our knowledge, this is the first study of bacterial communities in various organs/tissues of a crustacean in a shallow-water hydrothermal system, and as such, may be a convenient animal model for studying these systems.
authors.affiliation: Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.|Molecular and Biological Agricultural Sciences, Taiwan International Graduate Program, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.|Graduate Institute of Biotechnology and Department of Life Sciences, National Chung-Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Shan-Hua
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Pei-Wen
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.affiliation: Research Center for Environmental Changes, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Tin-Chang
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Marine Environment, Xiamen University, Fujian, China.
authors.forename: Shuh-Ji
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Kao
authors.affiliation: Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.|Molecular and Biological Agricultural Sciences, Taiwan International Graduate Program, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.|Biotechnology Center, National Chung-Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Sen-Lin
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Tang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D003386:Brachyura / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000382:microbiology*; D020565:Epsilonproteobacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D020563:Gammaproteobacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D060086:Hydrothermal Vents / Q000032:analysis / Q000382:microbiology*; D062312:Islands; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D012623:Seawater / Q000032:analysis / Q000382:microbiology*; D013455:Sulfur / Q000032:analysis; D013624:Taiwan
chemical_list: D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; D013455:Sulfur