Coral Reefs Article: Differential Response Mechanisms of Pavona decussata to Marine Heatwave Events

Recently, Dr. Zhang Man from our Marine Biology and Ecology Department, along with master's student Huang Shan, published a research paper titled "Insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the different heat tolerance of the scleractinian coral Pavona decussata" in the prestigious coral reef journal Coral Reefs.

Global climate change has led to increasingly frequent coral bleaching events. To further understand the molecular mechanisms by which corals respond to climate warming, this study utilized third-generation SMRT sequencing and second-generation sequencing technologies to reveal the transcriptional regulatory characteristics of bleached and unbleached P. decussata in Weizhou Island during the marine heat wave event in the South China Sea in 2020. The results show that the coral host has the ability to regulate metabolism and cope with stress, and its symbiotic algae (zooxanthellae) playing a particularly crucial role in metabolism. Furthermore, under natural heat stress conditions, unbleached coral host may actively use amino acids to maintain the homeostasis of the tricarboxylic acid cycle, while its symbiotic algae may absorb ammonium produced by coral host to maintain physiological activities. The downregulation of genes related to heat shock factors, nuclear factor κB, and tyrosine in the innate immune pathways of coral host may also be critical in maintaining coral symbiosis. These findings suggest that differences in molecular mechanisms may help to some extent in maintaining coral symbiosis and further influence the heat tolerance of P. decussata. This study provides the further theoretical basis for coral molecular biology and coral reef ecological conservation.

For more information, refer to the article:

Zhang Man, Huang Shan, Luo Li, Yu Xiaopeng, Wang Hao, Yu Kefu, Zhong Shengping. (2024). Insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the different heat tolerance of the scleractinian coral Pavona decussata. Coral Reefs. doi:10.1007/s00338-024-02478-9