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Díez-Vives C, Koutsouveli V, Conejero M, Riesgo A. Global patterns in symbiont selection and transmission strategies in sponges. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.1015592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Sponges host dense and diverse communities of microbes (known as the microbiome) beneficial for the host nutrition and defense. Symbionts in turn receive shelter and metabolites from the sponge host, making their relationship beneficial for both partners. Given that sponge-microbes associations are fundamental for the survival of both, especially the sponge, such relationship is maintained through their life and even passed on to the future generations. In many organisms, the microbiome has profound effects on the development of the host, but the influence of the microbiome on the reproductive and developmental pathways of the sponges are less understood. In sponges, microbes are passed on to oocytes, sperm, embryos, and larvae (known as vertical transmission), using a variety of methods that include direct uptake from the mesohyl through phagocytosis by oocytes to indirect transmission to the oocyte by nurse cells. Such microbes can remain in the reproductive elements untouched, for transfer to offspring, or can be digested to make the yolky nutrient reserves of oocytes and larvae. When and how those decisions are made are fundamentally unanswered questions in sponge reproduction. Here we review the diversity of vertical transmission modes existent in the entire phylum Porifera through detailed imaging using electron microscopy, available metabarcoding data from reproductive elements, and macroevolutionary patterns associated to phylogenetic constraints. Additionally, we examine the fidelity of this vertical transmission and possible reasons for the observed variability in some developmental stages. Our current understanding in marine sponges, however, is that the adult microbial community is established by a combination of both vertical and horizontal (acquisition from the surrounding environment in each new generation) transmission processes, although the extent in which each mode shapes the adult microbiome still remains to be determined. We also assessed the fundamental role of filtration, the cellular structures for acquiring external microbes, and the role of the host immune system, that ultimately shapes the stable communities of prokaryotes observed in adult sponges.
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Geraghty S, Koutsouveli V, Hall C, Chang L, Sacristan-Soriano O, Hill M, Riesgo A, Hill A. Establishment of Host-Algal Endosymbioses: Genetic Response to Symbiont Versus Prey in a Sponge Host. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:6427630. [PMID: 34791195 PMCID: PMC8633732 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The freshwater sponge Ephydatia muelleri and its Chlorella-like algal partner is an emerging model for studying animal: algal endosymbiosis. The sponge host is a tractable laboratory organism, and the symbiotic algae are easily cultured. We took advantage of these traits to interrogate questions about mechanisms that govern the establishment of durable intracellular partnerships between hosts and symbionts in facultative symbioses. We modified a classical experimental approach to discern the phagocytotic mechanisms that might be co-opted to permit persistent infections, and identified genes differentially expressed in sponges early in the establishment of endosymbiosis. We exposed algal-free E. muelleri to live native algal symbionts and potential food items (bacteria and native heat-killed algae), and performed RNA-Seq to compare patterns of gene expression among treatments. We found a relatively small but interesting suite of genes that are differentially expressed in the host exposed to live algal symbionts, and a larger number of genes triggered by host exposure to heat-killed algae. The upregulated genes in sponges exposed to live algal symbionts were mostly involved in endocytosis, ion transport, metabolic processes, vesicle-mediated transport, and oxidation–reduction. One of the host genes, an ATP-Binding Cassette transporter that is downregulated in response to live algal symbionts, was further evaluated for its possible role in the establishment of the symbiosis. We discuss the gene expression profiles associated with host responses to living algal cells in the context of conditions necessary for long-term residency within host cells by phototrophic symbionts as well as the genetic responses to sponge phagocytosis and immune-driven pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Geraghty
- Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Virginia, USA.,Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, New Jersey, USA
| | - Vasiliki Koutsouveli
- Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Marine Ecology, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Chelsea Hall
- Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Virginia, USA.,Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
| | - Lillian Chang
- Department of Biology, Bates College, Lewiston, Maine, USA
| | - Oriol Sacristan-Soriano
- Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Virginia, USA.,Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes (CEAB, CSIC), Blanes, Spain
| | - Malcolm Hill
- Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Virginia, USA.,Department of Biology, Bates College, Lewiston, Maine, USA
| | - Ana Riesgo
- Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, National Museum of Natural Sciences, Madrid, Spain
| | - April Hill
- Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Virginia, USA.,Department of Biology, Bates College, Lewiston, Maine, USA
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Hall C, Camilli S, Dwaah H, Kornegay B, Lacy C, Hill MS, Hill AL. Freshwater sponge hosts and their green algae symbionts: a tractable model to understand intracellular symbiosis. PeerJ 2021; 9:e10654. [PMID: 33614268 PMCID: PMC7882143 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.10654] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2020] [Accepted: 12/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
In many freshwater habitats, green algae form intracellular symbioses with a variety of heterotrophic host taxa including several species of freshwater sponge. These sponges perform important ecological roles in their habitats, and the poriferan:green algae partnerships offers unique opportunities to study the evolutionary origins and ecological persistence of endosymbioses. We examined the association between Ephydatia muelleri and its chlorophyte partner to identify features of host cellular and genetic responses to the presence of intracellular algal partners. Chlorella-like green algal symbionts were isolated from field-collected adult E. muelleri tissue harboring algae. The sponge-derived algae were successfully cultured and subsequently used to reinfect aposymbiotic E. muelleri tissue. We used confocal microscopy to follow the fate of the sponge-derived algae after inoculating algae-free E. muelleri grown from gemmules to show temporal patterns of symbiont location within host tissue. We also infected aposymbiotic E. muelleri with sponge-derived algae, and performed RNASeq to study differential expression patterns in the host relative to symbiotic states. We compare and contrast our findings with work in other systems (e.g., endosymbiotic Hydra) to explore possible conserved evolutionary pathways that may lead to stable mutualistic endosymbioses. Our work demonstrates that freshwater sponges offer many tractable qualities to study features of intracellular occupancy and thus meet criteria desired for a model system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chelsea Hall
- Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA, United States of America.,Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - Sara Camilli
- Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA, United States of America.,Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States of America
| | - Henry Dwaah
- Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA, United States of America
| | - Benjamin Kornegay
- Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA, United States of America
| | - Christie Lacy
- Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA, United States of America
| | - Malcolm S Hill
- Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA, United States of America.,Biology, Bates College, Lewiston, ME, United States of America
| | - April L Hill
- Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA, United States of America.,Biology, Bates College, Lewiston, ME, United States of America
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Small DP, Bishop CD. Physiological benefits and latent effects of an algal-salamander symbiosis. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2020; 246:110715. [PMID: 32320756 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2020.110715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2019] [Revised: 04/14/2020] [Accepted: 04/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Embryos of the salamander Ambystoma maculatum (Shaw) and the uni-cellular green alga Oophila amblystomatis (Lambert ex Wille) have evolved a resource exchange mutualism. Whereas some of the benefits of the symbiosis to embryos are known, the physiological limitations of the relationship to embryos and carry over or latent effects on larvae are not. To determine the impact of the relationship across life history stages, we measured the growth, survival, and metabolic rate in response to hypoxia of salamander embryos reared under 0-h light (algae absent), 14-h light (control - algae present, fluctuating light conditions) and 24-h light (algae present, chronic light conditions) and the resulting larvae two-weeks post hatch. Embryos reared under 0-h light demonstrated decreased growth and survival compared to 14- and 24-h light, with no effect on metabolic rates or the response of metabolic rates to declining oxygen partial pressure (pO2). Conversely, larvae from embryos reared under 0-h light exhibited compensatory growth during the two-week larval rearing period, with body sizes matching those from the 14-h light treatment. Larvae from embryos reared under 24-h light had lower wet body mass and LT50 values upon starvation compared to those reared under 14-h light. Coupled with the lowest metabolic rates under normoxic pO2 levels, this indicates the presence of negative latent effects. We discuss the findings in relation to the effect of the symbiotic relationship on hypoxia tolerance and larval fitness with respect to the presence of compensatory growth and negative latent effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel P Small
- Biology Department, St. Francis Xavier University, 2320 Notre Dame Avenue, Antigonish, Nova Scotia B2G 1S7, Canada; Département de Biologie, Chimie et Géographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, 300 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, Québec, G5L 3A1, Canada.
| | - Cory D Bishop
- Biology Department, St. Francis Xavier University, 2320 Notre Dame Avenue, Antigonish, Nova Scotia B2G 1S7, Canada
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Sacristán‐Soriano O, Winkler M, Erwin P, Weisz J, Harriott O, Heussler G, Bauer E, West Marsden B, Hill A, Hill M. Ontogeny of symbiont community structure in two carotenoid-rich, viviparous marine sponges: comparison of microbiomes and analysis of culturable pigmented heterotrophic bacteria. ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY REPORTS 2019; 11:249-261. [PMID: 30761773 PMCID: PMC6850349 DOI: 10.1111/1758-2229.12739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2018] [Revised: 01/31/2019] [Accepted: 02/06/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Marine sponges harbour diverse communities of microbes. Mechanisms used to establish microbial symbioses in sponges are poorly understood, and the relative contributions of horizontal and vertical transmission are unknown for most species. We examined microbial communities in adults and larvae of carotenoid-rich Clathria prolifera and Halichondria bowerbanki from the mid-Atlantic region of the eastern United States. We sequenced microbiomes from larvae and their mothers and seawater (16S rRNA gene sequencing), and compared microbial community characteristics between species and ambient seawater. The microbial communities in sponges were significantly different than those found in seawater, and each species harboured a distinctive microbiome. Larval microbiomes exhibited significantly lower richness compared with adults, with both sponges appearing to transfer to larvae a particular subset of the adult microbiome. We also surveyed culturable bacteria isolated from larvae of both species. Due to conspicuous coloration of adults and larvae, we focused on pigmented heterotrophic bacteria. We found that the densities of bacteria, in terms of colony-forming units and pigmented heterotrophic bacteria, were higher in larvae than in seawater. We identified a common mode of transmission (vertical and horizontal) of microbes in both sponges that might differ between species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oriol Sacristán‐Soriano
- Department of BiologyUniversity of RichmondRichmondVAUSA
- Marine Ecology DepartmentCentro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes (CEAB, CSIC)BlanesSpain
| | - Marina Winkler
- Department of BiologyUniversity of RichmondRichmondVAUSA
| | - Patrick Erwin
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology, Center for Marine ScienceUniversity of North CarolinaWilmingtonNCUSA
| | - Jeremy Weisz
- Department of BiologyLinfield CollegeMcMinnvilleORUSA
| | | | - Gary Heussler
- Department of BiologyFairfield UniversityFairfieldCTUSA
| | - Emily Bauer
- Department of BiologyUniversity of RichmondRichmondVAUSA
| | | | - April Hill
- Department of BiologyUniversity of RichmondRichmondVAUSA
| | - Malcolm Hill
- Department of BiologyUniversity of RichmondRichmondVAUSA
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Tanaka Y, Suzuki A, Sakai K. The stoichiometry of coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis: carbon and nitrogen cycles are balanced in the recycling and double translocation system. ISME JOURNAL 2018; 12:860-868. [PMID: 29330535 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-017-0019-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2017] [Revised: 10/30/2017] [Accepted: 11/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Symbioses between microalgae and animal hosts have the advantage of acquiring and sharing autotrophically produced organic carbon (C) as their energy source. However, the stoichiometry and turnover rates of biological elements in symbioses are not fully understood because of complicated metabolic interactions. We report the first comprehensive and simultaneous measurement of C and nitrogen (N) flows through coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis by using the unique approach of dual-isotope labeling with 13C and 15N, in situ chasing, and isotope-mixing models. The coral autotrophy occurred with much lower C:N ratios than previously thought, and the autotrophically produced N-rich organic matter was efficiently transferred to the animal host through two different pathways. In contrast to the dynamic N cycles within the symbiosis, the N uptake from the ambient seawater was extremely limited, which enabled the coral symbiosis to sustain N with a long turnover time (1 year). These findings suggest that coral endosymbionts are not under N limitation but are actively producing organic N and driving microscale N cycles in the reef ecosystem. The present techniques could be applied to further quantify the C and N cycles in other symbiotic interactions and reveal their ecological advantages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasuaki Tanaka
- Sesoko Station, Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, 3422 Sesoko, Motobu, Okinawa, 905-0227, Japan. .,Faculty of Science, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Jalan Tungku Link, Gadong, BE1410, Brunei Darussalam.
| | - Atsushi Suzuki
- Geological Survey of Japan, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 1-1-1 Higashi, Tsukuba, 305-8567, Japan
| | - Kazuhiko Sakai
- Sesoko Station, Tropical Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, 3422 Sesoko, Motobu, Okinawa, 905-0227, Japan
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