Parasitic and Symbiotic Roles in Aquatic Microbial Ecosystems

Aquatic ecosystems are rich reservoirs of microbial diversity, playing vital roles in global biogeochemical cycles, food webs, and overall ecosystem resilience. Traditional microbial studies have predominantly concentrated on free-living species; however, advancements in Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) have brought to light the extensive diversity and ecological importance of parasitic and symbiotic microorganisms. These microbes, including viruses, bacteria, archaea, fungi, and protists, represent an underexplored faction of microbial communities interacting in complex networks that drive both evolutionary and ecological processes. Characterized by rapid reproduction, small size, and swift generation times, microbial parasites exert significant influence over nutrient cycling, food web interactions, host community dynamics, and broader ecosystem functionality.

This Research Topic aims to shed light on novel breakthroughs in understanding parasitism and symbiosis within aquatic microbial ecosystems. Central to this initiative is the objective to create a comprehensive compendium that showcases cutting-edge research into the ecological, genetic, and evolutionary mechanisms driving these interactions. Key goals include examining how innovative technologies, particularly high-resolution sequencing and advanced microscopy, revolutionize our understanding of parasite-host dynamics. Further, we aim to explore the regulatory role of microbial parasites in host population dynamics, community diversity influences, and their impacts on biogeochemical cycles and trophic interactions. Additional areas of investigation include co-evolutionary relationships, genomic adaptations for parasitism, parasite transmission, host defense mechanisms, and competitive interactions among parasites.

To gather further insights into the intricate dynamics of parasitism within aquatic microbial communities, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

• Identification and characterization of parasitic and symbiotic microbes.

• Ecological and biogeochemical repercussions of microbial parasitism.

• Coevolutionary and adaptive mechanisms in host-parasite relationships under environmental fluctuations.

• Impact on trophic networks, nutrient dynamics, and ecosystem resilience.

• Advances in modeling host-parasite interplay and community dynamics

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Parasitism, Symbiosis, microbiomes, Host-parasite dynamics, aquatic microbiomes

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.