Ocean acidification alters the diversity and structure of oyster associated microbial communities

Host-associated microbial communities are fundamental to host physiology, yet it is unclear how these communities will respond to environmental disturbances. Here, we disentangle the environment-linked and host-linked effects of ocean acidification on oyster-associated microbial communities. We exposed adult oysters (Crassostrea virginica) to CO2-induced ocean acidification (400 vs. 2800 ppm) for 80 d. We measured the oyster extrapallial fluid pH and sampled the gills for microbial analysis at six time points. We found that different subsets of microbes were linked to acidification (n = 34 amplicon sequence variants [ASVs]) and to host response (n = 20 ASVs) with little overlap (n = 8 ASVs), suggesting that some members of the oyster microbiome were more responsive to environmental conditions while others were more tightly linked to host condition. Our results provide insight into which members of the oyster microbiome may contribute to the health and resistance of their host, and which members are the most vulnerable to changing environmental conditions.

Automated summary

The study found that certain members of the oyster microbiome were more responsive to environmental conditions, while others were more closely linked to host condition. Different members of the oyster microbiome may contribute to the health and resistance of their hosts, with some members being more vulnerable to changing environmental conditions.