MBE702 Seminar Evaluation: Benjamin Young
Signatures of disease resistance for the threatened Caribbean branching coral, Acropora palmata.
Coral reefs are important ocean ecosystems that provide biodiversity and economic stability. Despite this value, anthropogenic stressors have caused drastic decreases in global coral cover. In the Caribbean, White Band Disease has caused tremendous declines in the critical ecosystem building coral, Acropora palmata. With disease incidence on the rise, an in-depth knowledge of disease resistance dynamics is imperative for conservation efforts. This will allow the persistence of the critical ecosystem functions that A. palmata provides.
Previous observational work with A. palmata genotypes has shown large differences in disease resistance, with percent disease transmission ranging from 0% to 100%. In this study, RNA-seq was used to look at the differential gene expression of 12 A. palmata genotypes with different disease susceptibility in 2016 and 2017. Through the use of 7-day disease challenge experiments, baseline and disease-exposed corals where obtained for RNA-seq analysis. Preliminary analysis indicates strong inter-annual variability between disease exposures in 2016 and 2017. Despite this variation, differential gene expression analysis reveals coordinated transcriptional responses that differ between baseline and disease-exposed corals. This work will contribute to scientifically driven restoration work by informing outplanting efforts of disease resistant genotypes, while also providing the benchmark for a field monitoring experiment of A. palmata on the Florida Reef Tract.