25 26 Seawater temperature rise in French Polynesia has repeatedly resulted in symbiosis breakdown 27 between giant clam (Tridacna maxima) and dinoflagellates (Symbiodinium spp.), particularly in 28 small individuals. Herein, we explored the physiological and gene expression responses of the 29 clam hosts and their photosynthetically active symbionts over a 65-day experiment in which 30 clams were exposed to either normal or environmentally relevant elevated seawater temperatures. 31These data were combined with publicly available data for both free-living Symbiodinium (clades 32 C1 and F) and Symbiodinium spp. in hospite with the coral Pocillopora damicornis. Gene module 33 preservation analysis revealed that the function of the symbionts' photosystem II was impaired at 34 high temperatures, and this response was conserved across all holobionts and Symbiodinium 35 clades examined. Similarly, activation of the phytohormone abscisic acid signaling and 36 epigenetics modulation appeared to be a key response mechanisms for symbionts in hospite with 37 giant clams exposed to high temperatures and also distinguish thermo-tolerant from thermo-38 sensitive Symbiodinium C1 phenotypes. 39
40MAIN TEXT 41 42Introduction 43 44Giant clams are mixotrophic organisms living in obligatory symbiosis with photosynthetic 45 dinoflagellates of the genus Symbiodinium (1, 2). Symbiodinium spp. associate not only with giant 46 clams, but with a diverse array of marine invertebrates, namely sponges, molluscs and cnidarians; 47 indeed, the coral-Symbiodinium symbiosis is the functional basis of all coral reefs (3). While in 48 scleractinian corals symbionts are located intracellularly, in giant clams they reside extracellularly 49 inside a tubular system called "Z-tubules," which are 1) found in the outer epithelium of the 50 mantle and 2) connected to the stomach (4). These in hospite dinoflagellates are known to provide 51 nutrients to the clam hosts via photosynthesis and may account for a major part of the clams' 52 energy needs (depending on the species and the life history stage) (5-9). The Symbiodinium genus 53 includes nine different clades with well characterized molecular and physiological differences 54 (10-12). One Symbiodinium clade, clade A (S. microadriaticum and S. fitti), has been recurrently 55 found in symbiosis with Tridacna maxima though members of clades C and D have been found in 56 clam tissues, as well (10,(13)(14)(15)(16)(17). Depending of the species, cladal representation of symbiont 57 types have been found to vary with individual size (mostly observed in T. squamosa), as well as 58 across environmental gradients (especially seawater temperatures) (15, 16). In French Polynesia, 59 eastern Tuamotu's archipelagos were historically characterized by high densities of small giant 60 clams (18)(19)(20). Recent mortality episodes and/or "bleaching" events in the Tuamotu Islands have, 61 however, been reported, including 1) a massive mortality event in 2009 that reduced the small 62 giant clam population by 90% at...