Morphological assessment of free-spawned sperm in scleractinian coral: a relationship between cell morphology and motility

Amaral, Amanda Pereira de; Pastrana, Yugo; Pereira, Cristiano Macedo; Valente, Wanderson; Godoy, Leandro

doi:10.1007/s00227-022-04124-w

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Thus, A. poculata sperm display a distinct morphological ‘type’ shared with sperm from other gonochoric but not hermaphroditic anthozoans, the latter of which have rounded nuclei and discrete mitochondria, but lack lipid bodies and perinuclear vesicles [12]. As different sperm morphologies correlate with molecular and functional differences within and outside of Cnidaria [10,19,50], these results call into question whether cnidarians with different sexual systems use the same sperm motility signalling pathway.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of a sperm motility signalling pathway in a gonochoric coral suggests conservation across cnidarian sexual systems

Glass,

Ashey,

Okongwu

et al. 2023

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Most stony corals liberate their gametes into the water column via broadcast spawning, where fertilization hinges upon the activation of directional sperm motility. Sperm from gonochoric and hermaphroditic corals display distinct morphological and molecular phenotypes, yet it is unknown whether the signalling pathways controlling sperm motility are also distinct between these sexual systems. Here, we addressed this knowledge gap using the gonochoric, broadcast spawning coral Astrangia poculata . We found that cytosolic alkalinization of sperm activates the pH-sensing enzyme soluble adenylyl cyclase (sAC), which is required for motility. Additionally, we demonstrate for the first time in any cnidarian that sAC activity leads to protein kinase A (PKA) activation, and that PKA activity contributes to sperm motility activation. Ultrastructures of A. poculata sperm displayed morphological homology with other gonochoric cnidarians, and sAC exhibited broad structural and functional conservation across this phylum. These results indicate a conserved role for pH-dependent sAC-cAMP-PKA signalling in sperm motility across coral sexual systems, and suggest that the role of this pathway in sperm motility may be ancestral in metazoans. Finally, the dynamics of this pH-sensitive pathway may play a critical role in determining the sensitivity of marine invertebrate reproduction to anthropogenic ocean acidification.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of a sperm motility signalling pathway in a gonochoric coral suggests conservation across cnidarian sexual systems

Glass,

Ashey,

Okongwu

et al. 2023

Proc. R. Soc. B.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Thus, A. poculata sperm display a distinct morphological “type” shared with sperm from other gonochoric but not hermaphroditic corals, the latter of which have rounded nuclei and discrete mitochondria, but lack lipid bodies and perinuclear vesicles (Steiner and Cortés, 1996). As different sperm morphologies correlate with molecular and functional differences both within and outside of phylum Cnidaria (Amaral et al, 2022; Darszon et al, 2020; Steiner, 1991), these results call into question whether cnidarians with different sexual systems utilize the same sperm motility signaling pathway.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As different sperm morphologies correlate with molecular and functional differences both within and outside of phylum Cnidaria (Amaral et al, 2022;Darszon et al, 2020;Steiner, 1991), these results call into question whether cnidarians with different sexual systems utilize the same sperm motility signaling pathway.…”

Section: Sperm From a Poculata Displayed A Morphology Typical Of Gono...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of sperm motility signaling pathway in a gonochoric coral suggests conservation across sexual systems

Glass

Ashey

Okongwu

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Many marine invertebrates liberate their gametes into the water column broadcast spawning, where fertilization hinges upon the successful activation of sperm motility. Here, we investigated the molecular mechanisms underpinning sperm motility in the broadcast spawning coral Astrangia poculata. We found that cytosolic alkalinization activates the pH-sensing enzyme soluble adenylyl cyclase (sAC), followed by motility, in A. poculata sperm. In addition, we show for the first time in any cnidarian that sAC activity is required to activate protein kinase A (PKA) in sperm, and that PKA activity is required for the initiation of sperm motility. Ultrastructures of A. poculata sperm displayed morphological homology to other gonochoric cnidarians, and investigation of cnidarian proteomes revealed that sAC, the central signaling node in the sperm motility pathway, demonstrates broad structural and functional conservation across a diversity of cnidarian species. Ultimately, these results suggest that the role of sAC signaling in sperm motility is conserved between sperm from gonochoric and hermaphroditic corals, which is surprising given their morphological dissimilarities. This study also offers insight into the evolution of the mechanisms controlling metazoan sperm motility.

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Morphological assessment of free-spawned sperm in scleractinian coral: a relationship between cell morphology and motility

Cited by 2 publications

References 24 publications

Characterization of a sperm motility signalling pathway in a gonochoric coral suggests conservation across cnidarian sexual systems

Characterization of a sperm motility signalling pathway in a gonochoric coral suggests conservation across cnidarian sexual systems

Characterization of sperm motility signaling pathway in a gonochoric coral suggests conservation across sexual systems

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