The role of gene expression and symbiosis in reef-building coral acquired heat tolerance

Full description

Wild coral colonies of Acropora tenuis were collected throughout the Great Barrier Reef and transferred to the Australian Sea Simulater (SeaSim). Corals were spawned, and produced purebred and hybris crosses, see Quigley & van Oppen (2022) and Dixon & Kenkel (2019) for full details of spawning and reproductive crossing.


Larvae produced from these crosses were sampled for gene expression and assayed using RNAseq before being exposed to control and heat stress for 36 hours (27 and 35.5 °C) in replicates of n=6 (“post” exposure samples).


Separate cohorts of each larval cross not used in the heat trials were then induced to settle and exposed to four symbiont treatments. These replicates were sampled for RNAseq for each of the crosses prior to the heat stress at time 0 and 56 hours at 27°C and 35.5°C treatments.


For survival measurements, individual larvae were counted within net-wells in replicate plates within each temperature treatment. Each larval survival measurement represents a discrete sample measurement. The unit of measure is the number of individual replicate wells containing larvae.


Juvenile replicates RNAseq samples were taken in each of the crosses after 58 days at 27 and 32°C. Survival measurements represent individual juvenile survival. Each represents a discrete sample measurement. The unit of measure is the number of individual replicate juveniles per replicate well, per replicate plate, per replicate tank for each temperature and symbiont treatment.


Larval survival was counted from 0 to 56 hours at 27°C and 35.5°C. Juvenile survival was counted at 0 and after 58 days at 27 and 32°C treatments. Larvae were assayed for RNAseq at 0 and 56 hours, and juveniles only at 58 days.


Experimental metadata of detailed replicates for larval treatments are found on the github repository in file J19188meta.csv. For“pre”, and “post-ambient” there were 33 larval replicates. For “post-hot” there were 30 replicates. Each replicate represented 10 pooled larvae. Each of the 11 crosses was replicated 3 times within each of those 3 treatment groups. There was a total of 96 larval samples.


Experimental metadata for juvenile data is found on the github repository in file J19234meta.csv. Of the juvenile samples, 119 werein ambient conditions with 27 in the heat treatment. Each of the 10 crosses was represented in the juvenile dataset 12-18 times. Thesymbiont treatments had 29 samples in C1, 38 samples in D1, 43 samples in SED, and 36 in SS1. There was a total of 146 juvenile samples.


Derived statistics presented are defined as independent observations of n= independent larval or juvenile survival based on the number

Lineage

Maintenance and Update Frequency: asNeeded

Statement: Quigley, K. M. & van Oppen, M. J. H. Predictive models for the selection of thermally tolerant corals based on offspring survival. Nat. Commun. 13, 1543 (2022) Dixon,G.B. & Kenkel,C.D. Molecular convergence and positive selection associated with the evolution of symbiont transmission mode in stony corals. Proc. R. Soc. B286, 20190111 (2019).

Notes

Credit
Strader, ME. Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA

Credit
Quigley, K. Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) and Minderoo Foundation, Perth, WA, Australia