1
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Jiang L, Liu CY, Cui G, Huang LT, Yu XL, Sun YF, Tong HY, Zhou GW, Yuan XC, Hu YS, Zhou WL, Aranda M, Qian PY, Huang H. Rapid shifts in thermal reaction norms and tolerance of brooded coral larvae following parental heat acclimation. Mol Ecol 2023; 32:1098-1116. [PMID: 36528869 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16826] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Revised: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Thermal priming of reef corals can enhance their heat tolerance; however, the legacy effects of heat stress during parental brooding on larval resilience remain understudied. This study investigated whether preconditioning adult coral Pocillopora damicornis to high temperatures (29°C and 32°C) could better prepare their larvae for heat stress. Results showed that heat-acclimated adults brooded larvae with reduced symbiont density and shifted thermal performance curves. Reciprocal transplant experiments demonstrated higher bleaching resistance and better photosynthetic and autotrophic performance in heat-exposed larvae from acclimated adults compared to unacclimated adults. RNA-seq revealed strong cellular stress responses in larvae from heat-acclimated adults that could have been effective in rescuing host cells from stress, as evidenced by the widespread upregulation of genes involved in cell cycle and mitosis. For symbionts, a molecular coordination between light harvesting, photoprotection and carbon fixation was detected in larvae from heat-acclimated adults, which may help optimize photosynthetic activity and yield under high temperature. Furthermore, heat acclimation led to opposing regulations of symbiont catabolic and anabolic pathways and favoured nutrient translocation to the host and thus a functional symbiosis. Notwithstanding, the improved heat tolerance was paralleled by reduced light-enhanced dark respiration, indicating metabolic depression for energy saving. Our findings suggest that adult heat acclimation can rapidly shift thermal tolerance of brooded coral larvae and provide integrated physiological and molecular evidence for this adaptive plasticity, which could increase climate resilience. However, the metabolic depression may be maladaptive for long-term organismal performance, highlighting the importance of curbing carbon emissions to better protect corals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Jiang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Hong Kong Branch (HKB) of the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong, China
| | - Cheng-Yue Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Hong Kong Branch (HKB) of the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong, China
| | - Guoxin Cui
- Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division, Red Sea Research Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Lin-Tao Huang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,CAS-HKUST Sanya Joint Laboratory of Marine Science Research, Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Sanya Institute of Ocean Eco-Environmental Engineering, SCSIO, Sanya, China.,Sanya National Marine Ecosystem Research Station, Tropical Marine Biological Research Station in Hainan, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiao-Lei Yu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,CAS-HKUST Sanya Joint Laboratory of Marine Science Research, Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Sanya Institute of Ocean Eco-Environmental Engineering, SCSIO, Sanya, China.,Sanya National Marine Ecosystem Research Station, Tropical Marine Biological Research Station in Hainan, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - You-Fang Sun
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Hong Kong Branch (HKB) of the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong, China
| | - Hao-Ya Tong
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Hong Kong Branch (HKB) of the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong, China
| | - Guo-Wei Zhou
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,CAS-HKUST Sanya Joint Laboratory of Marine Science Research, Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Sanya Institute of Ocean Eco-Environmental Engineering, SCSIO, Sanya, China.,Sanya National Marine Ecosystem Research Station, Tropical Marine Biological Research Station in Hainan, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, China
| | - Xiang-Cheng Yuan
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,CAS-HKUST Sanya Joint Laboratory of Marine Science Research, Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Sanya Institute of Ocean Eco-Environmental Engineering, SCSIO, Sanya, China.,Sanya National Marine Ecosystem Research Station, Tropical Marine Biological Research Station in Hainan, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, China
| | - Yi-Si Hu
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
| | - Wen-Liang Zhou
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
| | - Manuel Aranda
- Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division, Red Sea Research Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Pei-Yuan Qian
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Hong Kong Branch (HKB) of the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong, China
| | - Hui Huang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Bio-resources and Ecology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Marine Biology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China.,CAS-HKUST Sanya Joint Laboratory of Marine Science Research, Key Laboratory of Tropical Marine Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Sanya Institute of Ocean Eco-Environmental Engineering, SCSIO, Sanya, China.,Sanya National Marine Ecosystem Research Station, Tropical Marine Biological Research Station in Hainan, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, China
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2
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Quigley KM, van Oppen MJH. Predictive models for the selection of thermally tolerant corals based on offspring survival. Nat Commun 2022; 13:1543. [PMID: 35351901 PMCID: PMC8964693 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28956-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2020] [Accepted: 02/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Finding coral reefs resilient to climate warming is challenging given the large spatial scale of reef ecosystems. Methods are needed to predict the location of corals with heritable tolerance to high temperatures. Here, we combine Great Barrier Reef-scale remote sensing with breeding experiments that estimate larval and juvenile coral survival under exposure to high temperatures. Using reproductive corals collected from the northern and central Great Barrier Reef, we develop forecasting models to locate reefs harbouring corals capable of producing offspring with increased heat tolerance of an additional 3.4° heating weeks (~3 °C). Our findings predict hundreds of reefs (~7.5%) may be home to corals that have high and heritable heat-tolerance in habitats with high daily and annual temperature ranges and historically variable heat stress. The locations identified represent targets for protection and consideration as a source of corals for use in restoration of degraded reefs given their potential to resist climate change impacts and repopulate reefs with tolerant offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- K M Quigley
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville, QLD, Australia.
| | - M J H van Oppen
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville, QLD, Australia
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
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3
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Xing F, Ai N, Huang S, Jiang C, Mughal MJ, Ge W, Wang G, Deng CX. An In Vivo Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer-Based Imaging Platform for Targeted Drug Discovery and Cancer Therapy. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:839078. [PMID: 35237583 PMCID: PMC8884137 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.839078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
In the present study, an efficient in vivo drug screening platform is established based on FRET technique. We transfected cancer cells with FRET-based caspase-3 (C3) sensor and validated the cell lines by detecting the change in FRET signal caused by the in vitro drug-induced cell apoptosis. Furthermore, the C3 expressing cancer cells were then injected into zebrafish embryos and nude mice to establish the corresponding in vivo xenograft models. We found that cancer cell lines expressing C3 were effective in detecting cell death following drug treatment, including the detection of the tipping point of apoptosis. The drug-induced cell apoptosis was also observed in both zebrafish embryos and nude mice xenograft models. Overall, the FRET-based platform, through in vivo imaging, is potentially useful to improve drug screening efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fuqiang Xing
- Cancer Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China,Department of Biology, School of Life Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Computational Science and Material Design, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China,Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging and Guangdong Provincial Engineering Research Center of Molecular Imaging, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Zhuhai, China
| | - Nana Ai
- Centre of Reproduction, Development and Aging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China
| | - Shigao Huang
- Cancer Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China
| | - Cheng Jiang
- School of Life and Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China
| | | | - Wei Ge
- Centre of Reproduction, Development and Aging, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China
| | - Guanyu Wang
- Department of Biology, School of Life Sciences, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Computational Science and Material Design, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China,School of Life and Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China,*Correspondence: Guanyu Wang, ; Chu-Xia Deng,
| | - Chu-Xia Deng
- Cancer Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China,*Correspondence: Guanyu Wang, ; Chu-Xia Deng,
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4
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Bioactivity Potential of Marine Natural Products from Scleractinia-Associated Microbes and In Silico Anti-SARS-COV-2 Evaluation. Mar Drugs 2020; 18:md18120645. [PMID: 33339096 PMCID: PMC7765564 DOI: 10.3390/md18120645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2020] [Revised: 12/06/2020] [Accepted: 12/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Marine organisms and their associated microbes are rich in diverse chemical leads. With the development of marine biotechnology, a considerable number of research activities are focused on marine bacteria and fungi-derived bioactive compounds. Marine bacteria and fungi are ranked on the top of the hierarchy of all organisms, as they are responsible for producing a wide range of bioactive secondary metabolites with possible pharmaceutical applications. Thus, they have the potential to provide future drugs against challenging diseases, such as cancer, a range of viral diseases, malaria, and inflammation. This review aims at describing the literature on secondary metabolites that have been obtained from Scleractinian-associated organisms including bacteria, fungi, and zooxanthellae, with full coverage of the period from 1982 to 2020, as well as illustrating their biological activities and structure activity relationship (SAR). Moreover, all these compounds were filtered based on ADME analysis to determine their physicochemical properties, and 15 compounds were selected. The selected compounds were virtually investigated for potential inhibition for SARS-CoV-2 targets using molecular docking studies. Promising potential results against SARS-CoV-2 RNA dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) and methyltransferase (nsp16) are presented.
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5
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Coral Disease Causes, Consequences, and Risk within Coral Restoration. Trends Microbiol 2020; 28:793-807. [PMID: 32739101 DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2020.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2019] [Revised: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 06/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
As a result of increased reef degradation, restoration efforts are now being widely applied on coral reefs. However, outplanted coral survival in restoration zones varies substantially, and coral mortality can be a significant limitation to the success of restoration efforts. With reef restoration now occurring within, and adjacent to, nationally preserved and managed marine parks, the potential risks of mortality events and disease spread to adjacent marine populations need to be considered, particularly as these ecosystems continue to decline. We review the causes and consequences of coral mortality and disease outbreaks within the context of coral restoration, highlighting knowledge gaps in our understanding of the restored coral microbiome and discussing management practices for assessing coral disease. We identify the need for research efforts into monitoring and diagnostics of disease within coral restoration, as well as practices to mitigate and manage coral disease risks in restoration.
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6
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Hartmann AC, Marhaver KL, Klueter A, Lovci MT, Closek CJ, Diaz E, Chamberland VF, Archer FI, Deheyn DD, Vermeij MJA, Medina M. Acquisition of obligate mutualist symbionts during the larval stage is not beneficial for a coral host. Mol Ecol 2019; 28:141-155. [PMID: 30506836 DOI: 10.1111/mec.14967] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2017] [Revised: 09/13/2018] [Accepted: 10/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Theory suggests that the direct transmission of beneficial endosymbionts (mutualists) from parents to offspring (vertical transmission) in animal hosts is advantageous and evolutionarily stable, yet many host species instead acquire their symbionts from the environment (horizontal acquisition). An outstanding question in marine biology is why some scleractinian corals do not provision their eggs and larvae with the endosymbiotic dinoflagellates that are necessary for a juvenile's ultimate survival. We tested whether the acquisition of photosynthetic endosymbionts (family Symbiodiniaceae) during the planktonic larval stage was advantageous, as is widely assumed, in the ecologically important and threatened Caribbean reef-building coral Orbicella faveolata. Following larval acquisition, similar changes occurred in host energetic lipid use and gene expression regardless of whether their symbionts were photosynthesizing, suggesting the symbionts did not provide the energetic benefit characteristic of the mutualism in adults. Larvae that acquired photosymbionts isolated from conspecific adults on their natal reef exhibited a reduction in swimming, which may interfere with their ability to find suitable settlement substrate, and also a decrease in survival. Larvae exposed to two cultured algal species did not exhibit differences in survival, but decreased their swimming activity in response to one species. We conclude that acquiring photosymbionts during the larval stage confers no advantages and can in fact be disadvantageous to this coral host. The timing of symbiont acquisition appears to be a critical component of a host's life history strategy and overall reproductive fitness, and this timing itself appears to be under selective pressure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron C Hartmann
- Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | | | | | - Michael T Lovci
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Collin J Closek
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
| | - Erika Diaz
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
| | - Valérie F Chamberland
- CARMABI Foundation, Willemstad, Curaçao.,Aquatic Microbiology/Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,SECORE International, Hilliard, Ohio
| | | | - Dimitri D Deheyn
- Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Mark J A Vermeij
- CARMABI Foundation, Willemstad, Curaçao.,Aquatic Microbiology/Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mónica Medina
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
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7
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Jordán-Dahlgren E, Jordán-Garza AG, Rodríguez-Martínez RE. Coral disease prevalence estimation and sampling design. PeerJ 2018; 6:e6006. [PMID: 30533304 PMCID: PMC6282945 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.6006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2018] [Accepted: 10/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last decades diseases have changed coral communities’ structure and function in reefs worldwide. Studies conducted to evaluate the effect of diseases on corals frequently use modified adaptations of sampling designs that were developed to study ecological aspects of coral reefs. Here we evaluate how efficient these sampling protocols are by generating virtual data for a coral population parameterized with mean coral density and disease prevalence estimates from the Caribbean scleractinian Orbicella faveolata at the Mexican Caribbean. Six scenarios were tested consisting of three patterns of coral colony distribution (random, randomly clustered and randomly over-dispersed) and two disease transmission modes (random and contagious). The virtual populations were sampled with the commonly used method of belt-transects with variable sample-unit sizes (10 × 1, 10 × 2, 25 × 2, 50 × 2 m). Results showed that the probability of obtaining a mean coral disease prevalence estimate of ±5% of the true prevalence value was low (range: 11–48%) and that two-sample comparisons achieved rather low power, unless very large effect sizes existed. Such results imply low statistical confidence to assess differences or changes in coral disease prevalence. The main problem identified was insufficient sample size because local mean colony size, density and spatial distribution of targeted coral species was not taken into consideration to properly adjust the sampling protocols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Jordán-Dahlgren
- Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo, México
| | - Adán G Jordán-Garza
- Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, Universidad Veracruzana, Tuxpan, Veracruz, México
| | - Rosa E Rodríguez-Martínez
- Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo, México
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8
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Kvitt H, Rosenfeld H, Tchernov D. The regulation of thermal stress induced apoptosis in corals reveals high similarities in gene expression and function to higher animals. Sci Rep 2016; 6:30359. [PMID: 27460544 PMCID: PMC4961959 DOI: 10.1038/srep30359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2016] [Accepted: 07/04/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent studies suggest that controlled apoptotic response provides an essential mechanism, enabling corals to respond to global warming and ocean acidification. However, the molecules involved and their functions are still unclear. To better characterize the apoptotic response in basal metazoans, we studied the expression profiles of selected genes that encode for putative pro- and anti-apoptotic mediators in the coral Stylophora pistillata under thermal stress and bleaching conditions. Upon thermal stress, as attested by the elevation of the heat-shock protein gene HSP70’s mRNA levels, the expression of all studied genes, including caspase, Bcl-2, Bax, APAF-1 and BI-1, peaked at 6–24 h of thermal stress (hts) and declined at 72 hts. Adversely, the expression levels of the survivin gene showed a shifted pattern, with elevation at 48–72 hts and a return to basal levels at 168 hts. Overall, we show the quantitative anti-apoptotic traits of the coral Bcl-2 protein, which resemble those of its mammalian counterpart. Altogether, our results highlight the similarities between apoptotic networks operating in simple metazoans and in higher animals and clearly demonstrate the activation of pro-cell survival regulators at early stages of the apoptotic response, contributing to the decline of apoptosis and the acclimation to chronic stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hagit Kvitt
- Marine Biology Department, The Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Haifa 31905, Israel.,The Interuniversity Institute for Marine Science P.O.B 469, Eilat 88103, Israel
| | - Hanna Rosenfeld
- Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, National Center for Mariculture, P.O.B. 1212, Eilat 88112, Israel
| | - Dan Tchernov
- Marine Biology Department, The Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Haifa 31905, Israel
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9
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Ainsworth TD, Heron SF, Ortiz JC, Mumby PJ, Grech A, Ogawa D, Eakin CM, Leggat W. Climate change disables coral bleaching protection on the Great Barrier Reef. Science 2016; 352:338-42. [DOI: 10.1126/science.aac7125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 286] [Impact Index Per Article: 35.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2015] [Accepted: 03/10/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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10
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Ainsworth TD, Knack B, Ukani L, Seneca F, Weiss Y, Leggat W. In situ hybridisation detects pro-apoptotic gene expression of a Bcl-2 family member in white syndrome-affected coral. DISEASES OF AQUATIC ORGANISMS 2015; 117:155-163. [PMID: 26648107 DOI: 10.3354/dao02882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
White syndrome has been described as one of the most prolific diseases on the Great Barrier Reef. Previously, apoptotic cell death has been described as the mechanism driving the characteristic rapid tissue loss associated with this disease, but the molecular mechanisms controlling apoptotic cell death in coral disease have yet to be investigated. In situ methods were used to study the expression patterns of 2 distinct regulators of apoptosis in Acropora hyacinthus tissues undergoing white syndrome and apoptotic cell death. Apoptotic genes within the Bcl-2 family were not localized in apparently healthy coral tissues. However, a Bcl-2 family member (bax-like) was found to localize to cells and tissues affected by white syndrome and those with morphological evidence for apoptosis. A potential up-regulation of pro-apoptotic or bax-like gene expression in tissues with apoptotic cell death adjacent to disease lesions is consistent with apoptosis being the primary cause of rapid tissue loss in coral affected by white syndrome. Pro-apoptotic (bax-like) expression in desmocytes and the basal tissue layer, the calicodermis, distant from the disease lesion suggests that apoptosis may also underlie the sloughing of healthy tissues associated with the characteristic, rapid spread of tissue loss, evident of this disease. This study also shows that in situ hybridisation is an effective tool for studying gene expression in adult corals, and wider application of these methods should allow a better understanding of many aspects of coral biology and disease pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- T D Ainsworth
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland 4810, Australia
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11
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Lutz A, Raina JB, Motti CA, Miller DJ, van Oppen MJH. Host Coenzyme Q Redox State Is an Early Biomarker of Thermal Stress in the Coral Acropora millepora. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0139290. [PMID: 26426118 PMCID: PMC4591267 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0139290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2015] [Accepted: 09/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Bleaching episodes caused by increasing seawater temperatures may induce mass coral mortality and are regarded as one of the biggest threats to coral reef ecosystems worldwide. The current consensus is that this phenomenon results from enhanced production of harmful reactive oxygen species (ROS) that disrupt the symbiosis between corals and their endosymbiotic dinoflagellates, Symbiodinium. Here, the responses of two important antioxidant defence components, the host coenzyme Q (CoQ) and symbiont plastoquinone (PQ) pools, are investigated for the first time in colonies of the scleractinian coral, Acropora millepora, during experimentally-induced bleaching under ecologically relevant conditions. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was used to quantify the states of these two pools, together with physiological parameters assessing the general state of the symbiosis (including photosystem II photochemical efficiency, chlorophyll concentration and Symbiodinium cell densities). The results show that the responses of the two antioxidant systems occur on different timescales: (i) the redox state of the Symbiodinium PQ pool remained stable until twelve days into the experiment, after which there was an abrupt oxidative shift; (ii) by contrast, an oxidative shift of approximately 10% had occurred in the host CoQ pool after 6 days of thermal stress, prior to significant changes in any other physiological parameter measured. Host CoQ pool oxidation is thus an early biomarker of thermal stress in corals, and this antioxidant pool is likely to play a key role in quenching thermally-induced ROS in the coral-algal symbiosis. This study adds to a growing body of work that indicates host cellular responses may precede the bleaching process and symbiont dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrian Lutz
- AIMS@JCU, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- Comparative Genomics Centre and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- * E-mail:
| | - Jean-Baptiste Raina
- AIMS@JCU, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
| | - Cherie A. Motti
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
| | - David J. Miller
- Comparative Genomics Centre and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
| | - Madeleine J. H. van Oppen
- Australian Institute of Marine Science, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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12
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The Chondroprotective Role of TMF in PGE2-Induced Apoptosis Associating with Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress. EVIDENCE-BASED COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE 2015; 2015:297423. [PMID: 26435723 PMCID: PMC4576019 DOI: 10.1155/2015/297423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2015] [Revised: 07/21/2015] [Accepted: 08/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) has been demonstrated to exhibit a critical role in osteoarthritic chondrocytes. Whether 5,7,3′,4′-tetramethoxyflavone (TMF) plays the chondroprotective role in inhibition of PGE2-induced chondrocytes apoptosis associating with ERS has not been reported. To investigate this, the activation of PERK, ATF6, and IRE1 signaling pathways in ERS in chondrocytes pretreated with PGE2 was studied. By treatment with PGE2, the chondrocytes apoptosis was significantly increased, the proapoptotic CHOP and JNK were upregulated, the prosurvival GRP78 and XBP1 were downregulated, and GSK-3β was also upregulated. However, TMF exhibited the effectively protective functions via counteracting these detrimental effects of PGE2. Finally, the inflammatory cytokine PGE2 can activate ERS signaling and promote chondrocytes apoptosis, which might be associated with upregulation of GSK-3β. TMF exhibits a chondroprotective role in inhibiting PGE2-induced ERS and GSK-3β.
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Breakdown of coral colonial form under reduced pH conditions is initiated in polyps and mediated through apoptosis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:2082-6. [PMID: 25646434 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1419621112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Certain stony corals can alternate between a calcifying colonial form and noncalcifying solitary polyps, supporting the hypothesis that corals have survived through geologic timescale periods of unfavorable calcification conditions. However, the mechanisms enabling this biological plasticity are yet to be identified. Here we show that incubation of two coral species (Pocillopora damicornis and Oculina patagonica) under reduced pH conditions (pH 7.2) simulating past ocean acidification induce tissue-specific apoptosis that leads to the dissociation of polyps from coenosarcs. This in turn leads to the breakdown of the coenosarc and, as a consequence, to loss of coloniality. Our data show that apoptosis is initiated in the polyps and that once dissociation between polyp and coenosarc terminates, apoptosis subsides. After reexposure of the resulting solitary polyps to normal pH (pH 8.2), both coral species regenerated coenosarc tissues and resumed calcification. These results indicate that regulation of coloniality is under the control of the polyp, the basic modular unit of the colony. A mechanistic explanation for several key evolutionarily important phenomena that occurred throughout coral evolution is proposed, including mechanisms that permitted species to survive the third tier of mass extinctions.
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Thompson JR, Rivera HE, Closek CJ, Medina M. Microbes in the coral holobiont: partners through evolution, development, and ecological interactions. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2015; 4:176. [PMID: 25621279 PMCID: PMC4286716 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2014.00176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 126] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2014] [Accepted: 12/04/2014] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
In the last two decades, genetic and genomic studies have revealed the astonishing diversity and ubiquity of microorganisms. Emergence and expansion of the human microbiome project has reshaped our thinking about how microbes control host health-not only as pathogens, but also as symbionts. In coral reef environments, scientists have begun to examine the role that microorganisms play in coral life history. Herein, we review the current literature on coral-microbe interactions within the context of their role in evolution, development, and ecology. We ask the following questions, first posed by McFall-Ngai et al. (2013) in their review of animal evolution, with specific attention to how coral-microbial interactions may be affected under future environmental conditions: (1) How do corals and their microbiome affect each other's genomes? (2) How does coral development depend on microbial partners? (3) How is homeostasis maintained between corals and their microbial symbionts? (4) How can ecological approaches deepen our understanding of the multiple levels of coral-microbial interactions? Elucidating the role that microorganisms play in the structure and function of the holobiont is essential for understanding how corals maintain homeostasis and acclimate to changing environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janelle R. Thompson
- Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridge, MA, USA
| | - Hanny E. Rivera
- Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Biology, Woods Hole Oceanographic InstitutionWoods Hole, MA, USA
| | - Collin J. Closek
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity Park, PA, USA
| | - Mónica Medina
- Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity Park, PA, USA
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Extensive differences in gene expression between symbiotic and aposymbiotic cnidarians. G3-GENES GENOMES GENETICS 2014; 4:277-95. [PMID: 24368779 PMCID: PMC3931562 DOI: 10.1534/g3.113.009084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 116] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Coral reefs provide habitats for a disproportionate number of marine species relative to the small area of the oceans that they occupy. The mutualism between the cnidarian animal hosts and their intracellular dinoflagellate symbionts provides the nutritional foundation for coral growth and formation of reef structures, because algal photosynthesis can provide >90% of the total energy of the host. Disruption of this symbiosis (“coral bleaching”) is occurring on a large scale due primarily to anthropogenic factors and poses a major threat to the future of coral reefs. Despite the importance of this symbiosis, the cellular mechanisms involved in its establishment, maintenance, and breakdown remain largely unknown. We report our continued development of genomic tools to study these mechanisms in Aiptasia, a small sea anemone with great promise as a model system for studies of cnidarian–dinoflagellate symbiosis. Specifically, we have generated de novo assemblies of the transcriptomes of both a clonal line of symbiotic anemones and their endogenous dinoflagellate symbionts. We then compared transcript abundances in animals with and without dinoflagellates. This analysis identified >900 differentially expressed genes and allowed us to generate testable hypotheses about the cellular functions affected by symbiosis establishment. The differentially regulated transcripts include >60 encoding proteins that may play roles in transporting various nutrients between the symbiotic partners; many more encoding proteins functioning in several metabolic pathways, providing clues regarding how the transported nutrients may be used by the partners; and several encoding proteins that may be involved in host recognition and tolerance of the dinoflagellate.
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Dunlap WC, Starcevic A, Baranasic D, Diminic J, Zucko J, Gacesa R, van Oppen MJH, Hranueli D, Cullum J, Long PF. KEGG orthology-based annotation of the predicted proteome of Acropora digitifera: ZoophyteBase - an open access and searchable database of a coral genome. BMC Genomics 2013; 14:509. [PMID: 23889801 PMCID: PMC3750612 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-14-509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2013] [Accepted: 07/15/2013] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Contemporary coral reef research has firmly established that a genomic approach is urgently needed to better understand the effects of anthropogenic environmental stress and global climate change on coral holobiont interactions. Here we present KEGG orthology-based annotation of the complete genome sequence of the scleractinian coral Acropora digitifera and provide the first comprehensive view of the genome of a reef-building coral by applying advanced bioinformatics. DESCRIPTION Sequences from the KEGG database of protein function were used to construct hidden Markov models. These models were used to search the predicted proteome of A. digitifera to establish complete genomic annotation. The annotated dataset is published in ZoophyteBase, an open access format with different options for searching the data. A particularly useful feature is the ability to use a Google-like search engine that links query words to protein attributes. We present features of the annotation that underpin the molecular structure of key processes of coral physiology that include (1) regulatory proteins of symbiosis, (2) planula and early developmental proteins, (3) neural messengers, receptors and sensory proteins, (4) calcification and Ca2+-signalling proteins, (5) plant-derived proteins, (6) proteins of nitrogen metabolism, (7) DNA repair proteins, (8) stress response proteins, (9) antioxidant and redox-protective proteins, (10) proteins of cellular apoptosis, (11) microbial symbioses and pathogenicity proteins, (12) proteins of viral pathogenicity, (13) toxins and venom, (14) proteins of the chemical defensome and (15) coral epigenetics. CONCLUSIONS We advocate that providing annotation in an open-access searchable database available to the public domain will give an unprecedented foundation to interrogate the fundamental molecular structure and interactions of coral symbiosis and allow critical questions to be addressed at the genomic level based on combined aspects of evolutionary, developmental, metabolic, and environmental perspectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Walter C Dunlap
- Centre for Marine Microbiology and Genetics, Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3 Townsville MC, Townsville 4810, Queensland, Australia
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, King’s College London, Franklin-Wilkins Building, 150 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NH, United Kingdom
| | - Antonio Starcevic
- Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Biochemical Engineering, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Pierottijeva 6, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Damir Baranasic
- Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Biochemical Engineering, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Pierottijeva 6, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Janko Diminic
- Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Biochemical Engineering, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Pierottijeva 6, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Jurica Zucko
- Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Biochemical Engineering, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Pierottijeva 6, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Ranko Gacesa
- Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Biochemical Engineering, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Pierottijeva 6, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Madeleine JH van Oppen
- Centre for Marine Microbiology and Genetics, Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3 Townsville MC, Townsville 4810, Queensland, Australia
| | - Daslav Hranueli
- Section for Bioinformatics, Department of Biochemical Engineering, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Pierottijeva 6, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - John Cullum
- Department of Genetics, University of Kaiserslautern, Postfach 3049, 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germany
| | - Paul F Long
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, King’s College London, Franklin-Wilkins Building, 150 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NH, United Kingdom
- Department of Chemistry King’s College London, Franklin-Wilkins Building, 150 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NH, United Kingdom
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Genes of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway in Mytilus galloprovincialis. PLoS One 2013; 8:e61502. [PMID: 23626691 PMCID: PMC3634015 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0061502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2013] [Accepted: 03/12/2013] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Bivalves play vital roles in marine, brackish, freshwater and terrestrial habitats. In recent years, these ecosystems have become affected through anthropogenic activities. The ecological success of marine bivalves is based on the ability to modify their physiological functions in response to environmental changes. One of the most important mechanisms involved in adaptive responses to environmental and biological stresses is apoptosis, which has been scarcely studied in mollusks, although the final consequence of this process, DNA fragmentation, has been frequently used for pollution monitoring. Environmental stressors induce apoptosis in molluscan cells via an intrinsic pathway. Many of the proteins involved in vertebrate apoptosis have been recognized in model invertebrates; however, this process might not be universally conserved. Mytilus galloprovincialis is presented here as a new model to study the linkage between molecular mechanisms that mediate apoptosis and marine bivalve ecological adaptations. Therefore, it is strictly necessary to identify the key elements involved in bivalve apoptosis. In the present study, six mitochondrial apoptotic-related genes were characterized, and their gene expression profiles following UV irradiation were evaluated. This is the first step for the development of potential biomarkers to assess the biological responses of marine organisms to stress. The results confirmed that apoptosis and, more specifically, the expression of the genes involved in this process can be used to assess the biological responses of marine organisms to stress.
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Abstract
Recent advances in DNA-sequencing technologies now allow for in-depth characterization of the genomic stress responses of many organisms beyond model taxa. They are especially appropriate for organisms such as reef-building corals, for which dramatic declines in abundance are expected to worsen as anthropogenic climate change intensifies. Different corals differ substantially in physiological resilience to environmental stress, but the molecular mechanisms behind enhanced coral resilience remain unclear. Here, we compare transcriptome-wide gene expression (via RNA-Seq using Illumina sequencing) among conspecific thermally sensitive and thermally resilient corals to identify the molecular pathways contributing to coral resilience. Under simulated bleaching stress, sensitive and resilient corals change expression of hundreds of genes, but the resilient corals had higher expression under control conditions across 60 of these genes. These "frontloaded" transcripts were less up-regulated in resilient corals during heat stress and included thermal tolerance genes such as heat shock proteins and antioxidant enzymes, as well as a broad array of genes involved in apoptosis regulation, tumor suppression, innate immune response, and cell adhesion. We propose that constitutive frontloading enables an individual to maintain physiological resilience during frequently encountered environmental stress, an idea that has strong parallels in model systems such as yeast. Our study provides broad insight into the fundamental cellular processes responsible for enhanced stress tolerances that may enable some organisms to better persist into the future in an era of global climate change.
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