Colonization of Sulfurovum sp. on the gill surfaces of Alvinocaris longirostris, a deep-sea hydrothermal vent shrimp

Abstract

Deep-sea hydrothermal vents are unique light-independent ecosystems that are sustained by chemosynthetic bacteria. For many of the invertebrates inhabiting in such environments, bacteria play essential roles in both energy acquisition and detoxification of potentially toxic gases such as H2S. In this study, the bacterial flora present on the gills of Alvinocaris longirostris (Bresiliidae: Caridea), a shrimp inhabiting hydrothermal vents (1532m depth) at the Hatoma Knoll of the Okinawa Trough, was investigated. Bacterial 16S rDNA fragments were successfully amplified from the gills and 70% of these fragments showed an identical pattern in the restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. These fragments were assigned to the ribotype AL-1. Phylogenetic analyses suggest that AL-1 forms a monophyletic clade with Sulfurovum spp. (ε-Proteobacteria). Fluorescence in situ hybridization for AL-1 and electron microscopy showed the presence of short-rod bacteria lining up on the cuticular layer of the surface of the gill filaments. These results suggest that bacterial association with gills also occurs in bresiliid shrimps. © 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 Blackwell Publishing.