Coral Microbial Ecology: Coastal and Marine Geology Program

Publisher: USGS (Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Eastern Region) | Format: URL

coastal.er.usgs.gov — Coral microbial ecology is the study of the relationship of coral-associated microorganisms to each other, the coral host, and to their environment. Just as we humans have beneficial bacteria living on our skin and in our intestines, corals also have co-habitating non-pathogenic (not disease-causing) microbes. These microbes include bacteria, More... Coral microbial ecology is the study of the relationship of coral-associated microorganisms to each other, the coral host, and to their environment. Just as we humans have beneficial bacteria living on our skin and in our intestines, corals also have co-habitating non-pathogenic (not disease-causing) microbes. These microbes include bacteria, archaea, and fungi-representing all three of the major domains of life. Archaea are prokaryotes (cells with no nucleus) like bacteria but are genetically and biochemically more similar to eukaryotes (organisms with cells that contain a true nucleus). This website links to a research project related to Coral Microbial-Ecology Studies, including topics such as Global Climate Change - Microbial Communities as a Diagnostic Tool, Archaea Associated with Corals, Microbial Ecology of Deep-Sea Corals, Mucus-Associated Bacteria Fend Off Coral Pathogens. Less...