PNNL

Abstract

The sea cucumber (H. glaberrima) is a species found in the shallow waters near coral reefs and seagrass beds in Puerto Rico. To characterize the taxonomic variety and functional profiles present in the sea cucumber, metagenomic genetic material was obtained from an intestinal system. Subsequently, DNA sequencing was carried out using Illumina technology and sequence analysis was performed through the NMDC - EDGE server. The analysis of the diversity profile revealed that the most predominant domain was Bacteria (76.56 %), followed by Viruses (23.24 %) and Archaea (0.04 %). Within the 11 phyla identified, the most abundant was Proteobacteria (73.16 %), followed by Terrabacteria group (3.20 %) and FCB group (1.02 %). The most abundant species were Porvidencia rettgeri (21.77 %), Pseudomonas stutzeri (14.78 %), and Alcaligenes faecalis (5.00 %). The analysis of the functional profile revealed that the most abundant functions are related to transporters, MISC, organic nitrogen, energy, and carbon utilization. The data collected in this project on the diversity and functional profiles of the intestinal system of the H. glaberrima provide a detailed view of its microbial ecology. These findings may motivate comparative studies aimed at understanding the role of the microbiome in intestinal regeneration.