Probiotics shield corals from deadly tissue loss disease

Researchers have discovered the first probiotic treatment to stop, slow or prevent the spread of a disease that has been killing corals in the Caribbean. and no risk of breeding antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the ocean.

Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) has baffled scientists since it was discovered in Florida reefs in 2014. The pathogen that causes it appears to spread rapidly through seawater. It has now killed off hard corals (reef-building corals with bony skeletons) in nearly all stretches of the Caribbean.

“Essentially, the coral creates an open wound that eventually spreads and consumes the coral, leaving only the skeleton,” says Blake Ushijima of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. found some large star coral fragments, even when infected. (Montastrea cabernosa) I never got sick. They collected samples of 222 bacterial strains with these disease-resistant fragments and found that 83 strains had some antibacterial activity.

When the team administered McH1-7 to live corals in plastic tent bags, they found that probiotic treatment halted or slowed the progression of SCTLD in 68% of 22 infected coral fragments. got it.

“More surprisingly, it seems to protect healthy corals from infection,” says Ushijima. In their 12 lab studies, probiotics prevented his SCTLD from spreading to healthy corals. This is something antibiotics cannot do. Because stony coral species are numerous and diverse, “each species may require its own treatment,” says Ushijima.

Probiotics can also provide longer-term protection than amoxicillin paste, which is currently hand-spread on corals, says Valerie Paul of the Smithsonian Marine Station in Fort Pierce, Florida. “It is hoped that probiotics can be incorporated into the coral microbiome and provide more lasting protection against disease.”

This treatment is currently being tested on wild corals at a reef near Fort. Located in Lauderdale, Florida and the Florida Keys.