Light

tolerance and thermal flexibility in coral symbionts

Department of Chemistry, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY. 2 Department of Geology, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY. 3NOAA Protected Resources Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, La Jolla CA.
1

Some like it warm, some like it cloudy

Jesse B. Crandall , Anke Klueter , Frederick I. Archer Mary Alice Coffroth , and Mark A Teece
1 2 3 2 1

Coral symbiosis forms the foundation of reef ecosystems Energy for coral growth comes from translocation of photosynthate molecules from symbiont to host coral Unusual temperature and light conditions stress coral symbiosis and may lead to bleaching Some genetically unique symbionts (Clade D) are more tolerant to elevated temperature than others [1] Coral host animal can increase energy metabolism (about 10x) as temperature increases [2] Symbionts increase energy production less in the same temperature change (about 1-2x) [2] Symbionts were isolated from the reef building coral Montastraea faveolata Four types of Symbiodinium spp. (A194, B184, B224, D206) were cultured in mild conditions. Symbiodinium spp. cells lysed and extracted. Metabolite extracts derivatized and separated by GC-MS Metabolites identified based on internal standards and comparison to spectral databases

Introduction and Background:

Results:
Algal symbiont B224
Dimension 2
Fatty acids

Random Forest Proximity Plot

0.3 0.4

Dissacharides Sterols

Amino acids

separation using GC-MS over 150 metabolites

-0.3

-0.2 -0.1

Simple sugars

A194 B184 B224 D206

-0.4 -0.2

4 types are clearly separated

Dimension 1

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

Statistical Analysis Random Forest analysis identifies predictive power of metabolites Proximity plots show metabolites that differentiate the types grown in culture Leads to a targeted approach for metabolite investigation Even in a small sample set, (n=4) differences are distinct

A Metabolomic Approach:

Targeted Metabolites:
Palmitic Acid Production in Symbionts
2.5

0.0

0.1

0.2

Hexose Production in Symbionts

Production relative to Protein Biomass
1.2

Disaccharide Production in Symbionts

Production relative to Protein Biomass
1.2

Production relative to Protein Biomass

Low Light (50 mol photons m-2 s-1) Increased Light (230 mol photons m-2 s-1)

Control temperature (26C) Decreased temperature (18C)

Control temperature (26C) Decreased temperature (18C)

2.0

1.0

1.0

1.5

0.8

0.8

0.6

0.6

1.0

0.4

0.4

0.5

0.2

0.2

Low Production
A194 B184 B224 Symbiont Type D206

0.0

A194

1. Change conditions to evaluate symbiont metabolite production in different temperature and light levels. Will symbiont types respond differently? 2. Use new molecular analysis tools to identify the suite of metabolites that symbionts can translocate to corals. What can the symbiont produce in altered conditions?
References: 1. Baker, A.C., et al., Corals adaptive response to climate change. Nature, 2004. 430(7001): p. 741-741. 2. Leggat, W., et al., Differential responses of the coral host and their algal symbiont to thermal stress. Plos One, 2011. 6(10).

Objectives:

Elevated light decreases type A194 and B184 high-energy fatty acid production Elevated light increases type D206 fatty acid production

B184 B224 Symbiont Type

D206

0.0

0.0

A194

B184 B224 Symbiont Type

D206

Decreased temperature conditions decrease simple sugars in all symbiont types Decreased temperature shuts down type D206 simple sugar production

Type A194, B184, and B224 maintain disaccharide production in the decreased temperature conditions Type D206 disaccharide production is low overall

Symbiont metabolism is sensitive to altered temperature and light conditions Type D206 is very different from the other types! It increases production of energy-rich fatty acids in our elevated light conditions when other types decrease production. Symbiodinium type A194, B184, and B224 continue to produce sugars, even at lower temperatures. Type D206 Symbiodinium responds to decreased temperature by markedly decreasing production of energy-rich photosynthates. Type B224 is productive throughout our range of temperature and light levels.

Conclusions:

Research was supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) grant OCE 0926822 and by the National Undersea Research Center, a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Addministration (NOAA)