An enemy within? Observations of virus-like particles in reef corals.

Wilson, William H.; Dale, Angela; Davy, Joanne E.; Davy, Simon K.

doi:10.1007/s00338-004-0448-0

Cited by 99 publications

(110 citation statements)

References 19 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

102

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The tail-less, hexagonal VLPs of 40 to 80 nm diameter seen in the present study are consistent with the shape and size range of numerous VLPs (diameter 40 to 50 nm) seen in zooxanthellae from the temperate sea anemone Anemonia viridis , and in coral tissue and zooxanthellae of Pavona danai (Wilson et al 2005). In addition, small tail-less VLPs of only 30 to 40 nm diameter were also seen in zooxanthellae from P. danai (Wilson et al 2005).…”

Section: Viral Morphology and The Application Of Temsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Furthermore, when the medium from around these stressed and degenerating zooxanthellae was added to non-stressed zooxanthellae, it induced cell lysis at a similar rate to that seen during thermal stress. These encouraging findings, plus the fact that zooxanthellae in A. viridis are taxonomically similar to those found in reef corals (Bythell et al 1997, Savage et al 2002, led to our recent work on the Indo-Pacific scleractinian coral Pavona danai (Wilson et al 2005). Here, we again used TEM to determine the presence of VLPs before and after thermal stress, and observed a range of VLP types in both coral tissue and the algal symbionts; we also observed similar VLPs in the coral Acropora formosa and the zoanthid Zoanthus sp.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 71%

“…These TEM observations of VLPs in zooxanthellate sea anemones, zoanthids and scleractinian corals, as well as in the non-symbiotic temperate sea anemone Metridium senile (Wilson & Chapman 2001) lead to several key questions concerning viral identity, origin, infection patterns, and whether viruses are seen in the field (Wilson et al 2005). Clearly, the most pressing question is whether or not the VLPs observed to date are actually viruses at all, or just an artefact of the methods employed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Viruses: agents of coral disease?

Davy

Burchett²,

Dale³

et al. 2006

Dis. Aquat. Org.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The potential role of viruses in coral disease has only recently begun to receive attention. Here we describe our attempts to determine whether viruses are present in thermally stressed corals Pavona danai, Acropora formosa and Stylophora pistillata and zoanthids Zoanthus sp., and their zooxanthellae. Heat-shocked P. danai, A. formosa and Zoanthus sp. all produced numerous virus-like particles (VLPs) that were evident in the animal tissue, zooxanthellae and the surrounding seawater; VLPs were also seen around heat-shocked freshly isolated zooxanthellae (FIZ) from P. danai and S. pistillata. The most commonly seen VLPs were tail-less, hexagonal and about 40 to 50 nm in diameter, though a diverse range of other VLP morphotypes (e.g. rounded, rod-shaped, droplet-shaped, filamentous) were also present around corals. When VLPs around heat-shocked FIZ from S. pistillata were added to non-stressed FIZ from this coral, they resulted in cell lysis, suggesting that an infectious agent was present; however, analysis with transmission electron microscopy provided no clear evidence of viral infection. The release of diverse VLPs was again apparent when flow cytometry was used to enumerate release by heat-stressed A. formosa nubbins. Our data support the infection of reef corals by viruses, though we cannot yet determine the precise origin (i.e. coral, zooxanthellae and/or surface microbes) of the VLPs seen. Furthermore, genome sequence data are required to establish the presence of viruses unequivocally. KEY WORDS: Viruses · Corals · Zooxanthellae· Coral disease · Coral health · StressResale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisher

show abstract

Section: Viral Morphology and The Application Of Temsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Viruses: agents of coral disease?

Davy

Burchett²,

Dale³

et al. 2006

Dis. Aquat. Org.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Therefore it may be reasonable to suggest that viruses will also be abundant within the CSM, either through non-discriminate accumulation from surrounding waters, as has been shown for human-sourced enteroviruses occurring within the CSM of near-shore coral communities (Lipp et al 2002), or alternatively forming distinct communities within the CSM in response to the abundance and distribution of their hosts. Previous studies using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) have shown the presence of VLPs within the tissues (Wilson & Chapman 2001) and zooxanthellae ) of 2 species of temperate anemone, as well as aquariamaintained scleractinian corals and their zooxanthellae (both freshly isolated and in situ) (Wilson et al 2005, Davy et al 2006. These studies suggest the induction of a latent virus infecting zooxanthellae and/or their host with increased seawater temperatures in laboratory settings.…”

Section: Coral-associated Microbes Within the Coral Surface Microlayermentioning

confidence: 69%

Morphological diversity of virus-like particles within the surface microlayer of scleractinian corals

Davy

Patten

2007

Aquat. Microb. Ecol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Transmission electron microscopy was employed to determine the morphological diversity of virus-like particles (VLPs) associated with the coral surface microlayer (CSM) of Acropora muricata and Porites spp. from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. VLPs were assigned to one of 17 sub-groups within 5 major morphological groups including tailed bacteriophages, polyhedral, filamentous and lemon-shaped VLPs. Polyhedral VLPs in the 30 to 60 nm size class dominated the CSM of A. muricata and Porites spp., comprising 29.4 and 26.9% of total VLPs, respectively. Tailed bacteriophages comprised < 6% of total VLPs within the CSM of both A. muricata and Porites spp. Filamentous VLPs (FVLPs) of varying lengths and widths accounted for up to 19.9% of total CSM VLPs, with no significant difference between the CSM samples and overlying water. Unique VLPs, which could not be classified into any known viral morphological group, accounted for 1.2 to 11.7% of total VLPs within the CSM and were absent from overlying water. While some exchange of VLPs likely occurred between the CSM and overlying water, our results suggest that the majority of CSM morphotypes were specific to the CSM micro-niche. The similarity of many of these VLPs to previously described viruses suggests that a range of potential hosts exist in the CSM, including bacteria, archaea, cyanobacteria, fungi, algae (possibly including zooxanthellae) and the coral animal. Research on coral-microbial interactions and their role in coral health and functioning is in its infancy and the present study provides important information on the largely unstudied viral component of the coral microbiota.

show abstract

“…It is known that reef corals and zooxanthellae can be infected by viruses (e.g. Wilson et al, 2005;Danovaro et al, 2008) and lytic phages of coral pathogens have been isolated (Efrony et al, 2007). The morphological diversity of viruses in coral mucus and in the holobiont is high (Davy and Patten, 2007;Patten et al, 2008a) and a high diversity was also shown by viral metagenomics of the holobiont (Marhaver et al, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dynamics of nutrients, total organic carbon, prokaryotes and viruses in onboard incubations of cold-water corals

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The potential influence of the cold-water corals (CWCs) Lophelia pertusa and Madrepora oculata on the dynamics of inorganic nutrient and total organic carbon (TOC) concentrations and the abundances of prokaryotes and viruses in bottom water was assessed in onboard incubation experiments. Ammonium, nitrite, dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) and TOC concentrations and N:P ratios were typically higher in incubation water with corals than in controls, whereas nitrate concentrations did not reveal a clear trend. Mucus release (normalized to coral surface) was estimated by the net increase rate of TOC concentrations and averaged 23 ± 6 mg C m −2 h −1 for L. pertusa and 21 ± 8 mg C m −2 h −1 for M. oculata. Prokaryotic and viral abundance and turnover rates were typically stimulated in incubation water with corals. This estimated prokaryotic stimulation averaged 6.0 ± 3.0 × 10 9 cells m −2 h −1 for L. pertusa and 8.4 ± 2.9 × 10 9 cells m −2 h −1 for M. oculata, whereas the estimated viral stimulation averaged 15.6 ± 12.7 × 10 9 particles m −2 h −1 for L. pertusa and 4.3 ± 0.4 × 10 9 particles m −2 h −1 M. oculata. Our data suggest that prokaryotes and viruses are released from corals and that nutrient and mucus release enhanced prokaryotic and viral production. The result of this stimulation could be a fuelling of bottom water in CWC reefs with nutrients and organic matter and consequently an enhancement of microbe-mediated processes.

show abstract

An enemy within? Observations of virus-like particles in reef corals.

Cited by 99 publications

References 19 publications

Viruses: agents of coral disease?

Viruses: agents of coral disease?

Morphological diversity of virus-like particles within the surface microlayer of scleractinian corals

Dynamics of nutrients, total organic carbon, prokaryotes and viruses in onboard incubations of cold-water corals

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About