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13C metabolomics reveals widespread change in carbon fate during coral bleaching

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Abstract

Introduction

Rising seawater temperatures are threatening the persistence of coral reefs; where above critical thresholds, thermal stress results in a breakdown of the coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis and the loss of algal symbionts (coral bleaching). As symbiont-derived organic products typically form a major portion of host energy budgets, this has major implications for the fitness and persistence of symbiotic corals.

Objectives

We aimed to determine change in autotrophic carbon fate within individual compounds and downstream metabolic pathways in a coral symbiosis exposed to varying degrees of thermal stress and bleaching.

Methods

We applied gas chromatography–mass spectrometry coupled to a stable isotope tracer (13C), to track change in autotrophic carbon fate, in symbiont and host individually, following exposure to elevated water temperature.

Results

Thermal stress resulted in partner-specific changes in carbon fate, which progressed with heat stress duration. We detected modifications to carbohydrate and fatty acid metabolism, lipogenesis, and homeostatic responses to thermal, oxidative and osmotic stress. Despite pronounced photodamage, remaining in hospite symbionts continued to produce organic products de novo and translocate to the coral host. However as bleaching progressed, we observed minimal 13C enrichment of symbiont long-chain fatty acids, also reflected in 13C enrichment of host fatty acid pools.

Conclusion

These data have major implications for our understanding of coral symbiosis function during bleaching. Our findings suggest that during early stage bleaching, remaining symbionts continue to effectively translocate a variety of organic products to the host, however under prolonged thermal stress there is likely a reduction in the quality of these products.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Ms. Niru Jayasinghe and Ms. Himasha Mendis at Metabolomics Australia for their assistance with GC–MS sample and data analysis. Thanks to the staff at Heron Island Research Station. Thanks also to A. Prof. Karsten Hiller and Dr. Daniel Weindl for their helpful advice on the optimization of NTFD analysis.

Funding

This research was supported by a Marsden Fund Grant (Contract Number VUW0902) awarded to SKD. This work fulfills part of the requirements for a PhD funded by a Victoria PhD Scholarship awarded to KEH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, P. O. Box 600, Wellington, 6140, New Zealand

    Katie E. Hillyer & Simon K. Davy

  2. School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3001, Australia

    Daniel Dias

  3. Metabolomics Australia, School of Biosciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia

    Adrian Lutz & Ute Roessner

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  1. Katie E. Hillyer
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Correspondence to Simon K. Davy.

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KEH, DD, AL, UR and SKD declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Coral samples were collected and maintained under GBR Marine Permit G14/36933.2. All applicable international, national and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

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This article does not contain any studies with human participants performed by any of the authors.

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Hillyer, K.E., Dias, D., Lutz, A. et al. 13C metabolomics reveals widespread change in carbon fate during coral bleaching. Metabolomics 14, 12 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-017-1306-8

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