Zooxanthellae: The Yellow Symbionts Inside Animals

Stambler, Noga

doi:10.1007/978-94-007-0114-4_7

Cited by 60 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 204 publications

(294 reference statements)

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“…Consistent with a coral-algae symbiotic relationship in which the host benefits but the symbiont gains little from the association (Douglas and Smith, 1989;Kiers and West, 2016;Lowe et al, 2016), we assume the symbiont biomass to be proportional to the host biomass so that the survival of the holobiont depends on the survival of the host. The coral controls the flux of nutrients to the algae and keeps most of the photosynthate products for itself thus preventing the algae to grow unboundedly (Muscatine, 1967;Wooldridge, 2010;Stambler, 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This association has often been considered as mutualistic (Muscatine and Porter, 1977;Stat et al, 2008) despite clear evidence shows a greater nutritional benefits for the corals than for the algae (Falkowski et al, , 1993Muscatine et al, 1984). This association has enabled the emergence of highly productive and diverse coral reef ecosystems in nutrient-poor waters of the tropical oceans (Stambler, 2011;Muller-Parker et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Being the algae located inside the host, the relationship is described as endosymbiotic. Corals can recruit algae from the external environment, a process called horizontal transmission, or inherit them directly from their parents, a process referred to as vertical transmission (Baker et al, 2004;Stambler, 2011;Muller-Parker et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Trait-Based Model for Describing the Adaptive Dynamics of Coral-Algae Symbiosis

2017

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The survival of many ecological communities relies on the symbiotic relationships formed by various organisms. An example of a symbiotic association that is often described as mutualistic is the one between corals and algae. Since the algae are located within coral epidermis, they are referred to as "endosymbiont" (more generally "symbiont") whereas the corals are referred to as "host." This association is based on the exchange of photosynthetically fixed carbon from algae to corals and inorganic nutrients, acquired from animal waste metabolites or directly from seawater, from corals to algae. The evolution of this symbiotic relationship has enabled the emergence of highly productive and diverse coral reef ecosystems in nutrient-poor waters of the tropical oceans. Here we present an adaptive, trait-based model that describes the temporal dynamics of this association. Given that corals control the flux of inorganic nutrients to the algae, we focus on the adaptation of a hypothetical trait expressed by the coral population: investment of energy in the symbiotic relationship. Investment of energy produces losses for the corals that reflect costs for algal photosynthetic efficiency and for sustaining and maintaining the symbiont population. The fitness of the coral is modeled as the net benefit obtained by the symbiotic association. The model features a decrease in the fraction of energy invested by the corals with increasing symbiont to host biomass ratio. Our sensitivity analyses show that the best conditions for the survival of the simulated coral-algae community occur for a broad range of symbiont to host biomass ratio if the costs of symbiosis are low. With increasing costs, the survival region narrows down to a smaller range of symbiont to host biomass ratio. Finally, a break down of the symbiotic relationship and a consequent collapse of the coral-algae system occur under shock changes in algal abundance.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Trait-Based Model for Describing the Adaptive Dynamics of Coral-Algae Symbiosis

2017

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“…They do so by controlling a wide range of biogeochemical processes important to coral reef functioning, and by intensively generating and transforming inorganic and organic materials [2]. These sessile cnidarians owe their evolutionary success to an endosymbiosis with photosynthetic dinoflagellate microalgae of the genus Symbiodinium that contribute a substantial fraction of the total gross primary productivity-that is, the amount of inorganic carbon (CO 2 ) photosynthetically fixed per unit of time-in coral reef ecosystems [3,4]. Up to 50% of the net fixed CO 2 in the coral is subsequently released as organic carbon (C) in the form of mucus [5], and provides a nutritious food source to other reef organisms via the microbial and sponge loops [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Functional significance of dinitrogen fixation in sustaining coral productivity under oligotrophic conditions

et al. 2015

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Functional traits define species by their ecological role in the ecosystem. Animals themselves are host–microbe ecosystems (holobionts), and the application of ecophysiological approaches can help to understand their functioning. In hard coral holobionts, communities of dinitrogen (N 2 )-fixing prokaryotes (diazotrophs) may contribute a functional trait by providing bioavailable nitrogen (N) that could sustain coral productivity under oligotrophic conditions. This study quantified N 2 fixation by diazotrophs associated with four genera of hermatypic corals on a northern Red Sea fringing reef exposed to high seasonality. We found N 2 fixation activity to be 5- to 10-fold higher in summer, when inorganic nutrient concentrations were lowest and water temperature and light availability highest. Concurrently, coral gross primary productivity remained stable despite lower Symbiodinium densities and tissue chlorophyll a contents. In contrast, chlorophyll a content per Symbiodinium cell increased from spring to summer, suggesting that algal cells overcame limitation of N, an essential element for chlorophyll synthesis. In fact, N 2 fixation was positively correlated with coral productivity in summer, when its contribution was estimated to meet 11% of the Symbiodinium N requirements. These results provide evidence of an important functional role of diazotrophs in sustaining coral productivity when alternative external N sources are scarce.

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“…Rapid uptake of ammonium by the coral animal and transfer to symbiotic dinoflagellates have been demonstrated through molecular studies (Yellowlees et al, 2008;Stambler, 2011) and hypothesized to be key strategies in the nutritional economy of cnidarians that have evolved in nutrient-poor waters (Pernice et al, 2012;Kopp et al, 2013). Support for this is provided by recent work that used NanoSIMS to demonstrate ammonium assimilation from 15 N-labelled ammonium ( 15 NH 4 Cl) in cells of both the coral host (that is, Acropora aspera and Isopora palifera) and Symbiodinium symbionts after just 1-h incubation (Pernice et al, 2012;Pernice et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Imaging the uptake of nitrogen-fixing bacteria into larvae of the coral Acropora millepora

et al. 2015

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Diazotrophic bacteria are instrumental in generating biologically usable forms of nitrogen by converting abundant dinitrogen gas (N2) into available forms, such as ammonium. Although nitrogen is crucial for coral growth, direct observation of associations between diazotrophs and corals has previously been elusive. We applied fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry to observe the uptake of 15N-enriched diazotrophic Vibrio sp. isolated from Acropora millepora into conspecific coral larvae. Incorporation of Vibrio sp. cells was observed in coral larvae after 4-h incubation with enriched bacteria. Uptake was restricted to the aboral epidermis of larvae, where Vibrio cells clustered in elongated aggregations. Other bacterial associates were also observed in epidermal areas in FISH analyses. Although the fate and role of these bacteria requires additional investigation, this study describes a powerful approach to further explore cell associations and nutritional pathways in the early life stages of the coral holobiont.

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Zooxanthellae: The Yellow Symbionts Inside Animals

Cited by 60 publications

References 204 publications

A Trait-Based Model for Describing the Adaptive Dynamics of Coral-Algae Symbiosis

A Trait-Based Model for Describing the Adaptive Dynamics of Coral-Algae Symbiosis

Functional significance of dinitrogen fixation in sustaining coral productivity under oligotrophic conditions

Imaging the uptake of nitrogen-fixing bacteria into larvae of the coral Acropora millepora

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