Together with the St. John’s Island National Marine Laboratory (SJINML), SCELSE PI and NTU’s School of Biological Sciences A/Prof Rebecca Case and SCELSE Research Fellow Dr Joao Pereyra identified a naturally occurring probiotic bacterium from the Roseobactereaceae family that helps improve coral resilience to heat stress. As part of the screening process, each bacterium was isolated, and its DNA was mapped to identify genes that could potentially be beneficial to corals. This discovery highlights how microbiome science can contribute to protecting coral reefs in a warming world.

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