New paper out today in Limnology & Oceanography (@aslo_org) led by all-around great guy & scientist Mike Coffin!
“The killer within: Endogenous bacteria accelerate oyster mortality during sustained anoxia”
aslopubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.10…
In a suite of experiments comparing #oysters treated w/ antibiotics vs. not, we demonstrate that bacteria endogenous to oysters accelerate mortality rates
The 3-year project was triggered by mass mortality of cultured oysters in 2016, seemingly linked to a period of low O₂
Generally, we found that oysters treated w/ antibiotics (chloramphenicol) lived approx. twice as long as those not treated with antibiotics
Oyster density appeared to have no effect on mortality rates under anoxia
Moribund/post-mortem histology confirmed the presence of bacteria in tissues of untreated oysters and a general lack thereof in antibiotic-treated oysters
Next-gen sequencing failed to identify a particular type of bacteria associate w/ mortality, but a diverse array of endogenous anaerobic & sulfate-reducing bacteria were common
We also monitored valve gaping behaviour in the lab (1st image) & field (2nd image) during anoxia, showing that oysters exhibit remarkable valve closure synchrony when initially exposed to anoxia, but individualized periodic openings thereafter
Overall, our results + previous studies strongly suggest that anoxia-related mass mortality events in bivalves are likely the result of co-morbidity from asphyxiation & bacterial processes
The results provide important information for understanding mechanisms of mortality as the frequency & severity of coastal anoxic/hypoxic events continues to increase
science.sciencemag.org/content/359/63…
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.