Endocrine‐Like Signaling in Corals

Tarrant, Ann M.

doi:10.1002/9781118828502.ch9

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 147 publications

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“…Having a thermal cue for increasing constituent immunity in a tolerant coral seems appropriate given that elevated water temperature on coral reefs is associated with high photosynthetically active radiation (PAR; Brown and Dunne, 2015) and increased pathogen load and virulence (Harvell et al, 1999(Harvell et al, , 2002Mydlarz et al, 2006). Two, possibly interacting, hypotheses of how water temperature triggers immune modulation include; (1) that during periods of elevated water temperature coral cells release "danger" components, such as nitric oxide and uric acid (Hawkins et al, 2014), which modulate immunity (Gallucci et al, 1999;Palmer, 2018) and (2) that the increase in water temperature is the cue in itself detected, potentially, by an anthozoan endocrine system yet-to-be thoroughly explored (Tarrant, 2015), which signals the immunity network. Regardless of the mechanism, inducing melanin synthesis pathways with warmer water may be particularly helpful as melanin is a photoprotective, radical-scavenging, brown to black pigment (Meredith et al, 2006) that is located within mobile coral cells (Palmer et al, 2008).…”

Section: Immune Trade-offs With Warmer Watermentioning

confidence: 99%

Warmer Water Affects Immunity of a Tolerant Reef Coral

Palmer

2018

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Corals are multipartite sedentary organisms, which have evolved complex, physiological networks in order to survive perturbations and environmental fluctuations. However, climate change is warming tropical waters, pushing the limits of coral tolerance and driving global declines. Coral susceptibility to thermal anomalies is variable among species and through time, and directly relates to constituent immunity. Constituent immunity refers to immune activities required to ensure homeostasis, whereas an immune response is acutely heightened immune activity to a perturbation. Understanding the mechanisms behind coral health, and sustained health through adverse conditions, is increasingly important for establishing effective reef conservation and restoration projects. However, most experimental studies of coral health use species that are highly susceptible to thermal events, potentially skewing our understanding. To determine the influence of warmer water on immunity, activities of key coral immune pathways and an antioxidant were compared under ambient (27 • C) and warmer water (32 • C), and between injured and uninjured (control) branches of the tolerant reef coral Porites cylindrica. Three types of phenoloxidase, mono-phenoloxidase, ortho-diphenoloxidase and para-diphenloxidase, indicative of two melanin synthesis pathways (the tyrosinase and laccase-type), and peroxidase were measured at 0 (control), 1, 6, 24, 48, and 168 h post-injury. All four enzymes demonstrated consistent levels of activity under ambient conditions (27 • C), indicating constituent immunity. Upon injury at ambient temperature, all enzyme activities were significantly higher 1 h post-injury as compared to uninjured controls, demonstrating a comprehensive immune response to tissue disruption. Under warmer water, constituent immunity increased through time indicative of immune modulation to maintain homeostasis. However, warmer water, within the non-bleaching summer range, suppressed the immune response to injury, delaying it by 24 h. Therefore, upon the environmental cue of warmer water, the tolerant coral P. cylindrica may divert resources away from immune responses (immunosuppression) while enhancing constituent immunity (immune modulation) so as to maintain health through sub-optimal conditions. These changes in immunity with warmer water demonstrate that temperature affects coral immunity and, for this tolerant coral, triggers immune-modulation that may provide cross-tolerance to perturbations more frequent in summer months, such as bleaching and disease.

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Section: Immune Trade-offs With Warmer Watermentioning

confidence: 99%

Warmer Water Affects Immunity of a Tolerant Reef Coral

Palmer

2018

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Cnidaria: Anthozoans in the Hot Seat

Palmer

Traylor-Knowles

2018

Advances in Comparative Immunology

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How does warmer sea water change the sensitivity of a Mediterranean thermophilic coral after immune-stimulation?

Bisanti,

La Corte,

Dara

et al. 2024

Coral Reefs

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Anthropogenic climate change is warming sea water worldwide, pushing the limits of tolerance for marine organisms and driving a decline in biodiversity. The risk of thermal anomalies has increased particularly in the Mediterranean region over the last 30 yrs, where intense warming has been identified as one of the main stressors in coastal regions. To determine the influence of warmer conditions on the immunity of an endemic Mediterranean coral species, different immune activity parameters were compared in response to elevated temperature (~ 28 °C) and the presence of a pathogen-associated molecular pattern—Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS)—as an elicitor of the innate immune response of Astroides calycularis. Immune parameters, which included phenoloxidase-like, glutathione peroxidase, lysozyme-like, alkaline phosphatase, and esterase enzyme activity, were measured over time after LPS balneation (0-, 12-, 48-, and 120 h time point). All five enzymes demonstrated constant values under environmental conditions (~ 23 °C), indicating a constituent activity. LPS at environmental temperature induced significant upregulation immediately after exposure (0 h-time point), demonstrating an immune response to the pathogen elicitor. Under warmer conditions (~ 28 °C), constituent values increased over time, indicating a shift in the immune strategy to maintain homeostasis. However, warmer sea water, within the summer range experienced by this coral species, impaired the immune response to LPS, delaying it over time. These changes in immune strategy indicate that temperature affects coral immunity and, in thermophilic A. calycularis, results in an energy trade-off that could maintain its health-state through suboptimal conditions during multiple perturbations, such as summertime diseases.

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Endocrine‐Like Signaling in Corals

Cited by 3 publications

References 147 publications

Warmer Water Affects Immunity of a Tolerant Reef Coral

Warmer Water Affects Immunity of a Tolerant Reef Coral

Cnidaria: Anthozoans in the Hot Seat

How does warmer sea water change the sensitivity of a Mediterranean thermophilic coral after immune-stimulation?

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