Inter-partner specificity limits the acquisition of thermotolerant symbionts in a model cnidarian-dinoflagellate symbiosis.

ABSTRACT: The ability of corals and other cnidarians to survive climate change depends partly on the composition of their endosymbiont communities. The dinoflagellate family Symbiodiniaceae is genetically and physiologically diverse, and one proposed mechanism for cnidarians to acclimate to rising temperatures is to acquire more thermally tolerant symbionts. However, cnidarian-dinoflagellate associations vary in their degree of specificity, which may limit their capacity to alter symbiont communities. Here, we inoculated symbiont-free polyps of the sea anemone Exaiptasia pallida (commonly referred to as 'Aiptasia'), a model system for the cnidarian-dinoflagellate symbiosis, with simultaneous or sequential mixtures of thermally tolerant and thermally sensitive species of Symbiodiniaceae. We then moni

SUBMITTER: Gabay Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6776018 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature