par Asadi Gharabaghi, Sara;Ben Hamadou, Radhouan;Flot, Jean-François 
;Beji, Marwa;Shokri, Mohammad Reza
Référence Integrative and comparative biology, 66
Publication Publié, 2026-01
;Beji, Marwa;Shokri, Mohammad RezaRéférence Integrative and comparative biology, 66
Publication Publié, 2026-01
Article révisé par les pairs
| Résumé : | Synopsis Coral-associated microbial communities are vital to coral resilience under environmental stress. We characterized the microbiomes of five scleractinian species—Porites harrisoni, Platygyra daedalea, Pavona decussata, Acropora downingi, and Acropora microphthalma—from northern (Kish, Iran) and southern (Sheraoh, Qatar) Persian Gulf reefs using full-length 16S rRNA sequencing. Sampling across seasons (winter and summer) and depths (shallow: 4–5 m; deep: 10–18 m) enabled comparison of diversity and reference-based taxonomic composition. A total of 3,984 unique taxonomic units were resolved using a full-length alignment-based approach (Emu). Microbial taxon richness was higher in deep reefs (Kish: 1,900; Sheraoh: 1,800) compared to shallow sites (∼1,300), with overall seasonal declines observed. Microbiomes comprised bacteria (70.9%), dominated by Pseudomonadota (62.4%), and archaea (21.9%) including Halobacteriota, Thermoproteota, Thermoplasmatota, Methanobacteriota, and Candidatus Korarchaeota. Species-specific restructuring included declines in Pseudomonadota for P. harrisoni (from 85.05% to 70.1%) and P. daedalea (from 75.0% to 50.05%), whereas A. downingi exhibited a sharp increase (from 2.0% to 52.3%). Notably, A. microphthalma remained archaea-dominated (>88%) year-round, suggesting potential functional stability under extreme conditions. These results demonstrate that depth, season, and host species shape microbial assemblages and highlight archaeal lineages and hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria as potential indicators of coral adaptation in hypersaline, thermally variable, and oil-exposed Gulf reefs. |
