Dataset Information

Geographical variation in the diatom communities associated with loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta).

ABSTRACT: Epizoic diatoms form an important part of micro-epibiota of marine vertebrates such as whales and sea turtles. The present study explores and compares the diversity and biogeography of diatom communities growing on the skin and shell of loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) from four different localities: Adriatic Sea (Croatia), Ionian Sea (Greece), South Africa and Florida Bay (USA) using both light and scanning electron microscopy. We observed almost 400 diatom taxa belonging to more than 100 genera. Diatom communities from Greece and Croatia showed the highest similarity and were statistically different from those recorded from South Africa and Florida. Part of this variation could be attributed to differences in sampling techniques; however, we believe that geography had an important role. In general, contrary to several previous observations from sea turtles, the presumably exclusively epizoic diatoms contributed less than common benthic taxa to the total diatom flora, which might have been related to the loggerhead feeding behavior. Moreover, skin samples differed from carapace samples in having a distinct diatom composition with a higher proportion of the putative true epizoonts. Our results indicate that epizoic diatom communities differ according to loggerhead geographical location and substrate (skin vs. carapace). The relative abundances of common benthic diatoms and putative exclusive epizoic taxa may inform about sea turtle habitat use or behavior though detailed comparisons among different host species have yet to be performed.

SUBMITTER: Van de Vijver B

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7390603 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Geographical variation in the diatom communities associated with loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta).

Van de Vijver Bart B Robert Käthe K Majewska Roksana R Frankovich Thomas A TA Panagopoulou Aliki A Bosak Sunčica S

PloS one 20200729 7

Epizoic diatoms form an important part of micro-epibiota of marine vertebrates such as whales and sea turtles. The present study explores and compares the diversity and biogeography of diatom communities growing on the skin and shell of loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) from four different localities: Adriatic Sea (Croatia), Ionian Sea (Greece), South Africa and Florida Bay (USA) using both light and scanning electron microscopy. We observed almost 400 diatom taxa belonging to more than 1 ...[more]

PMID: 32726804

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Project description:BackgroundMicrobial communities of wild animals are being increasingly investigated to provide information about the hosts' biology and promote conservation. Loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) are a keystone species in marine ecosystems and are considered vulnerable in the IUCN Red List, which led to growing efforts in sea turtle conservation by rescue centers around the world. Understanding the microbial communities of sea turtles in the wild and how affected they are by captivity, is one of the stepping stones in improving the conservation efforts. Describing oral and cloacal microbiota of wild animals could shed light on the previously unknown aspects of sea turtle holobiont biology, ecology, and contribute to best practices for husbandry conditions.ResultsWe describe the oral and cloacal microbiota of Mediterranean loggerhead sea turtles by 16S rRNA gene sequencing to compare the microbial communities of wild versus turtles in, or after, rehabilitation at the Adriatic Sea rescue centers and clinics. Our results show that the oral microbiota is more sensitive to environmental shifts than the cloacal microbiota, and that it does retain a portion of microbial taxa regardless of the shift from the wild and into rehabilitation. Additionally, Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes dominated oral and cloacal microbiota, while Kiritimatiellaeota were abundant in cloacal samples. Unclassified reads were abundant in the aforementioned groups, which indicates high incidence of yet undiscovered bacteria of the marine reptile microbial communities.ConclusionsWe provide the first insights into the oral microbial communities of wild and rehabilitated loggerhead sea turtles, and establish a framework for quick and non-invasive sampling of oral and cloacal microbial communities, useful for the expansion of the sample collection in wild loggerhead sea turtles. Finally, our investigation of effects of captivity on the gut-associated microbial community provides a baseline for studying the impact of husbandry conditions on turtles' health and survival upon their return to the wild.

Project description:Blood glucose is vital for many physiological pathways and can be quantified by clinical chemistry analyzers and in-house point-of-care (POC) devices. Pre-analytical and analytical factors can influence blood glucose measurements. This project aimed to investigate pre-analytical factors on whole blood and plasma glucose measurements in loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) by evaluating the effects of storage (refrigeration) up to 48h after sampling and of packed cell volume (PCV) on whole blood glucose analysis by POC glucometer (time series n = 13); and by evaluating the effects of storage (room temperature and refrigeration) on plasma glucose concentrations using a dry slide chemistry analyzer (DCA) at various conditions: immediate processing and delayed plasma separation from erythrocytes at 24h and 48h (time series n = 14). The POC glucometer had overall strong agreement with the DCA (CCC = 0.76, r = 0.84, Cb = 0.90), but consistently overestimated glucose concentrations (mean difference: +0.4 mmol/L). The POC glucometer results decreased significantly over time, resulting in a substantial decline within the first 2h (0.41±0.47 mmol/L; 8±9%) that could potentially alter clinical decisions, thereby highlighting the need for immediate analysis using this method. The effects of PCV on glucose could not be assessed, as the statistical significance was associated with one outlier. Storage method significantly affected plasma glucose measurements using DCA, with room temperature samples resulting in rapid decreases of 3.57±0.89 mmol/L (77±9%) over the first 48h, while refrigerated samples provided consistent plasma glucose results over the same time period (decrease of 0.26±0.23 mmol/L; 6±5%). The results from this study provide new insights into optimal blood sample handling and processing for glucose analysis in sea turtles, show the suitability of the POC glucometer as a rapid diagnostic test, and confirm the reliability of plasma glucose measurements using refrigeration. These findings emphasize the need to consider pre-/analytical factors when interpreting blood glucose results from loggerhead sea turtles.

Dataset Information

Geographical variation in the diatom communities associated with loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta).

Publications

Geographical variation in the diatom communities associated with loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta).

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