Contrasting microbiome dynamics of putative denitrifying bacteria in two octocoral species exposed to dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and warming.

Mutualistic nutrient cycling in the coral-algae symbiosis depends on limited nitrogen (N) availability for algal symbionts. Denitrifying prokaryotes capable of reducing nitrate or nitrite to dinitrogen could thus support coral holobiont functioning by limiting N availability. Octocorals show some of the highest denitrification rates among reef organisms, however little is known about the community structures of associated denitrifiers and their...