The microbiome of the red sea coral stylophora pistillata is dominated by tissue-associated endozoicomonas bacteria

Abstract

Endozoicomonas bacteria were found highly associated with the coral Stylophora pistillata, and these bacteria are also ubiquitously associated with diverse corals worldwide. Novel Endozoicomonas-specific probes revealed that Endozoicomonas bacteria were abundant in the endodermal tissues of S. pistillata and appear to have an intimate relationship with the coral. © 2013, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.