Warm seawater temperature promotes substrate colonization by the blue coral, Heliopora coerulea.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Heliopora coerulea, the blue coral, is a reef building octocoral that is reported to have a higher optimum temperature for growth compared to most scleractinian corals. This octocoral has been observed to grow over both live and dead scleractinians and to dominate certain reefs in the Indo-Pacific region. The molecular mechanisms underlying the ability of H. coerulea to tolerate warmer seawater temperatures and to effectively compete for space on the substrate remain to be elucidated.

Methods

In this study, we subjected H. coerulea colonies to various temperatures for up to 3 weeks. The growth and photosynthetic efficiency rates of the coral colonies were measured. We then conducted pairwise comparisons of gene expression among the different c

SUBMITTER: Guzman C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6768060 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature