Producing Coral Offspring with Cryopreserved Sperm: A Tool for Coral Reef Restoration

Hagedorn, Mary; Carter, Virginia L.; Henley, E. Michael; Oppen, Madeleine J. H. van; Hobbs, Rebecca J.; Spindler, Rebecca

doi:10.1038/s41598-017-14644-x

Cited by 33 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Across both nights, final sperm concentration was between 1.17 × 10 6 and 2.53 × 10 6 cells/mL for the low-sperm treatments and between 3.52 × 10 6 and 7.60 × 10 6 cells/mL for the high-sperm treatments (Table 2). Overall, the final sperm-to-egg ratio in the in vitro fertilization experiments spanned the ratio considered optimal for corals (100,000:1) (Hagedorn et al 2017).…”

Section: In Vitro Fertilization Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…In corals, this can result in lower sperm motility of thawed samples compared to fresh samples, a longer time until cell cleavage begins, and potentially higher variability in reproductive success from trial-to-trial (Hagedorn et al 2012a;Hagedorn et al 2017). These effects of cryopreservation appear to be restricted to the early stages of fertilization and the initiation of embryogenesis.…”

Section: Utility Of Cryopreserved Materials In Coral Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For each spawning coral species, there are only a few hours per year during which fresh gametes can be collected and mixed. However, cryopreservation and long-term liquid nitrogen storage of coral sperm is now possible, thanks to recent advances in the collection, analysis, freezing, storage, and thawing of this material (Hagedorn et al 2006;Hagedorn et al 2012a;Hagedorn et al 2017;Viyakarn et al 2018). Moreover, in 2018, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine specifically highlighted the need for well-developed and reliable cryopreservation methods to help enhance and conserve coral reef biodiversity (National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Cryopreservation of coral sperm and fertilization of coral eggs with thawed cryopreserved sperm have both been successfully demonstrated in the past (Hagedorn et al 2012a;Hagedorn et al 2012b;Hagedorn et al 2017). Coral sperm repositories in the U.S. and Australia (Hagedorn et al 2012b) now hold material from over 25 coral species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Coral sperm repositories in the U.S. and Australia (Hagedorn et al 2012b) now hold material from over 25 coral species. In 2017, using two reef-building species on the Great Barrier Reef, coral larvae were successfully produced using cryopreserved sperm and the resulting larvae had the same settlement success as conspecifics produced using fresh sperm (Hagedorn et al 2017). This study demonstrated that cryopreserved sperm can be used successfully to propagate coral juveniles up to the settlement stage.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Successful Demonstration of Assisted Gene Flow in the Threatened Coral Acropora Palmata Across Genetically-Isolated Caribbean Populations Using Cryopreserved Sperm

Hagedorn

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O'Neill

et al. 2018

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Global change will compromise the population sizes, species ranges, and survival of economically-important plants and animals, including crops, aquaculture species, and foundational ecosystem builders. Scleractinian reef-building corals are a particular concern because they are slow-growing, long-lived, environmentally-sensitive, and concentrated in the warmest regions of the ocean. Assisted Gene Flow (AGF) is considered a viable tool to help natural plant and animal populations, including corals, adapt to changing environments. Our goal was to test for the first time whether cryopreserved coral sperm could be used to facilitate assisted gene flow between genetically-isolated populations of a Caribbean coral. We collected, pooled, and cryopreserved coral sperm from the threatened Caribbean coral Acropora palmata in the western Caribbean (Key Largo, FL), central Caribbean (Rincón, Puerto Rico), and eastern Caribbean (Curaçao). Alongside freshly-collected sperm from Curaçao, the cryopreserved sperm from each of these populations was used for in vitro fertilization experiments with freshlycollected eggs from Curaçao. Across five egg donors, average fertilization success was 91 to 99% for CUR × CUR (fresh sperm) crosses, 37 to 82% for CUR × CUR (frozen sperm) crosses, 3 to 19% for CUR × FL (frozen sperm) crosses and 0 to 24% for CUR × PR (frozen sperm) crosses. Notably, fertilization was achieved in all four categories of crosses, showing for the first time through direct evidence that populations of A. palmata are reproductively compatible, and that genetic diversity can be transferred from one population to another for the purposes of assisted gene flow. The resulting larvae were reared in Curaçao for up to 7 days, then the swimming larvae were transported to Florida for settlement and grow-out at two separate facilities, which achieved larval settlement rates of 37 to 60% across all cohorts. Larvae were reared and settled in Florida to acclimate them to the ambient water quality, microbial environment, and temperature regimes of the western genetic A. palmata population as early in their life cycle as possible. At one month, over 54% all settlers had survived, including over 3500 settlers from CUR x CUR (frozen sperm), 1200 settlers from CUR × FL (frozen sperm), and 230 settlers from CUR × PR (frozen sperm). These experiments represent the first-ever pan-Caribbean coral crosses produced in captivity and the first direct evidence that geographicallyseparated and genetically-isolated populations of any Caribbean coral are reproductively compatible. Moreover, with over 4700 A. palmata settlers produced using cryopreserved sperm, Hagedorn et al. Cryopreservation-Assisted Gene Flow in Elkhorn Coral 3 this represents the largest living wildlife population ever created from cryopreserved material. Together, these findings demonstrate that cryopreservation of coral sperm can enable efficient, large-scale assisted gene flow in corals. This form of assisted migration can not only help to preserve the population-level geneti...

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Section: In Vitro Fertilization Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Utility Of Cryopreserved Materials In Coral Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%