Reproduction Of Sponges Research Articles

Global patterns in symbiont selection and transmission strategies in sponges

Sponges host dense and diverse communities of microbes (known as the microbiome) beneficial for the host nutrition and defense. Symbionts in turn receive shelter and metabolites from the sponge host, making their relationship beneficial for both partners. Given that sponge-microbes associations are fundamental for the survival of both, especially the sponge, such relationship is maintained through their life and even passed on to the future generations. In many organisms, the microbiome has profound effects on the development of the host, but the influence of the microbiome on the reproductive and developmental pathways of the sponges are less understood. In sponges, microbes are passed on to oocytes, sperm, embryos, and larvae (known as vertical transmission), using a variety of methods that include direct uptake from the mesohyl through phagocytosis by oocytes to indirect transmission to the oocyte by nurse cells. Such microbes can remain in the reproductive elements untouched, for transfer to offspring, or can be digested to make the yolky nutrient reserves of oocytes and larvae. When and how those decisions are made are fundamentally unanswered questions in sponge reproduction. Here we review the diversity of vertical transmission modes existent in the entire phylum Porifera through detailed imaging using electron microscopy, available metabarcoding data from reproductive elements, and macroevolutionary patterns associated to phylogenetic constraints. Additionally, we examine the fidelity of this vertical transmission and possible reasons for the observed variability in some developmental stages. Our current understanding in marine sponges, however, is that the adult microbial community is established by a combination of both vertical and horizontal (acquisition from the surrounding environment in each new generation) transmission processes, although the extent in which each mode shapes the adult microbiome still remains to be determined. We also assessed the fundamental role of filtration, the cellular structures for acquiring external microbes, and the role of the host immune system, that ultimately shapes the stable communities of prokaryotes observed in adult sponges.

Asexual reproduction and heterozygote selection in an Antarctic demosponge (Stylocordyla chupachus, Suberitida)

Antarctic bottoms harbor stable, benthic communities, subjected to low temperatures. Environmental stability may promote the asexual (clonal) reproduction of sponges to maintain adapted genotypes to those particular conditions. Stylocordyla chupachups forms patchy populations across the Antarctic continental shelf. Individuals are mostly similar in size without distinct cohorts, which indicates fast growth of the new recruits. Settlement of incubated (clonal?) functional sponges may accelerate sponge growth and success at early colonization phases. To analyze the weight of clonal reproduction in the species, a genetic study was performed on three close populations using eight polymorphic microsatellite loci that were designed from massive sequencing. The three study populations showed a relatively low genetic diversity and low loci polymorphism (from 2 to 6 alleles). The estimators of genetic structure, the Analysis of the Molecular Variance (AMOVA), and the presence of private alleles indicated low but significant structure between the populations. A relatively high rate of asexual reproduction (ca. 25% of the individuals) was detected. The program MLGsim found five identical multilocus genotypes (MLGs) with an asexual origin. An excess of heterozygotes (in five out of the eight loci genotyped) was found, which suggests a positive selection mechanism for heterozygotes. The relatively high rates of asexual reproduction may be the result of adaptation to the environmental stability, while heterozygote selection would help maintain some genetic diversity in the populations. S. chupachups has been reported to be one of the first sponge species recolonizing bare areas resulting from iceberg scouring, which indicates a high species fitness and adaptation to Antarctic bottoms. Two out of the three study populations showed bottleneck, which may indicate a recent founder effect and supports the pioneer nature of this species.

Outlook on sponge reproduction science in the last ten years: are we far from where we should be?

To comprehend the state of the art of sponge reproduction science (SRS), we quantified and analyzed the trends in SRS in the last decade, aiming to answer three questions: (i) Were there fewer SRS works presented during the last sponge conference? (ii) Did the number of SRS publications decline in the last decade? (iii) Does the number of abstracts at sponge conferences influence overall SRS publications? In addition, we checked whether the SRS community has answered Ereskovsky’s ‘five important questions’, enabling us to advance SRS enough to be considered as a fourth period of this scientific field. We found that SRS was less represented at the last sponge conference, despite an increase in the number of publications during the last decade. Moreover, the number of abstracts presented at sponge conferences contributed to a small portion (25%) of the published works in this area during the last decade. In addition, we found that two of the five Ereskovsky’s questions are still mostly not answered. Thus, we conclude that SRS is healthy and advancing steadily, especially in some subareas (e.g. developmental biology and life history). There are still much to advance, but this is still a strong field of biological science research.

Inferring the ancestral sexuality and reproductive condition in sponges (Porifera)

Considerable diversity abounds among sponges with respect to reproductive and developmental biology. Their ancestral sexual mode (gonochorism vs. hermaphroditism) and reproductive condition (oviparity vs. viviparity) however remain unclear, and these traits appear to have undergone correlated evolution in the phylum. To infer ancestral traits and investigate this putative correlation, we used DNA sequence data from two loci (18S ribosomal RNA and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I) to explore the phylogenetic relationships of 62 sponges whose reproductive traits have been previously documented. Although the inferred tree topologies, using the limited data available, favoured paraphyly of sponges, we also investigated ancestral character‐state reconstruction on a phylogeny with constrained sponge monophyly. Both parsimony‐ and likelihood‐based ancestral state reconstructions indicate that viviparity (brooding) was the likely reproductive mode of the ancestral sponge. Hermaphroditism is favoured over gonochorism as the sexual condition of the sponge ancestor under parsimony, but the reconstruction is ambiguous under likelihood, rendering the ancestry of sexuality unresolved in our study. These results are insensitive to the constraint of sponge monophyly when tracing the reproductive characters using parsimony methods. However, the maximum likelihood analysis of the monophyletic hypothetical tree rendered gonochorism as ancestral for the phylum. A test of trait correlation unambiguously favours the concerted evolution of sexuality and reproductive mode in sponges (hermaphroditism/viviparity, gonochorism/oviparity). Although testing ecological hypotheses for the pattern of sponge reproduction is beyond the scope of our analyses, we postulate that certain physiological constrains might be key causes for the correlation of reproductive characters.

Sources of Secondary Metabolite Variation in Dysidea avara (Porifera: Demospongiae): The Importance of Having Good Neighbors

Several studies report temporal, geographical, and intra-individual variation in sponge metabolite yields. However, the internal and/or external factors that regulate the metabolite production remain poorly understood. Dysidea avara is a demosponge that produces sesquiterpenoids (avarol and derivatives) with interesting medical properties, which has prompted addressed studies to obtain enough amounts of these metabolites for research on drug discovery. Within this framework, specimens of Dysidea avara from apopulation of the Northwest Mediterranean were sampled and their secondary metabolites quantified to assess their variability and the possible relationship with external (seasonality, interactions with neighbors) and internal (reproductive stages) factors. The results show a variation of the amount of both avarol and its monoacetate derivative with time, with no clear relationship with seawater temperature. A trade-off with sponge reproduction was not found either. However, our results showed for the first time that sponges are able to increase production or accumulation of secondary metabolites in their peripheral zone depending on the nature of their neighbors. This finding could explain part of the high variability in the amount of secondary metabolites usually found in chemical ecology studies on sponges and opens new biotechnological approaches to enhance the metabolite yield in sponge cultures.

Impact of an invasive alga (Womersleyella setacea) on sponge assemblages: compromising the viability of future populations

The effects of invasive species on native fauna are understudied, even though their consequences should be taken into consideration for the proper conservation and management of marine systems. Furthermore, bioinvasions may have greater consequences if they affect key structural species with slow dynamics such as marine sponges. We propose that reproductive output could be used as a potential early warning signal to detect possible future changes in population trends of long-lived species (i.e. sponges) as a result of biological invasions. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of invasive algal (Womersleyella setacea) overgrowth on sponge reproduction by comparing the presence of reproductive elements (spermatic cysts, oocytes, embryos, and larvae) in sponges covered by a thick carpet of the invasive algae and in sponges dwelling in the same habitat but without the invasive algae. Three variables were calculated to assess the impact of the invasive alga on sponge reproduction: the reproductive effort, the proportion of individuals in reproduction, and the size of the reproductive structures. We studied eight sponge species representing the main components of the deep rocky reefs of the area. Our results showed that W. setacea had a strong negative effect on sponge reproduction in six out of eight sponge species studied, with lower and even nil reproductive structures on the sponges subjected to the algal overgrowth. Thus, considering that sexual reproduction is necessary for the persistence of most sponge populations, a significant and constant reduction of the reproductive effort may compromise their viability and affect future trends in these benthic systems.

Lysophospholipids in the Mediterranean Sponge Oscarella tuberculata: Seasonal Variability and Putative Biological Role

Lysophospholipids (LPLs) are recognized as important signaling molecules in metazoan cells. LPLs seem to be widely distributed among marine invertebrates, but their physiological role remains poorly known. Marine sponges produce original phospholipids and LPLs whose isolation and structural elucidation rarely have been reported. Two LPLs were isolated for the first time from the Mediterranean Homoscleromorph sponge Oscarella tuberculata: a bioactive lyso-PAF already identified in some other sponge species; and the new lysophosphatidylethanolamine C20:2 (LPE 1). The expression of LPL metabolites was investigated over time to determine their baseline variations and to relate them to the sponge reproduction pattern in order to better understand their putative role in the sponge life cycle. Expression levels of both compounds appeared to be highly correlated displaying significant seasonal fluctuations with maximal values in summer and minimal in winter. A significant higher LPL content was detected in reproductive sponges and especially in females, with a peak occurring during embryogenesis and larval development. The results suggest that LPLs could play a role of mediators in sponge embryogenesis and morphogenesis.

VIII.—Observations on Mr. Carter's paper “On two new sponges from the Antarctic Sea, and on a new species of Tethya from Shetland; together with observations on the reproduction of sponges commencing from Zygosis of the Sponge-animal

VIII.—<i>Observations on Mr. Carter's paper “On two new sponges from the Antarctic Sea, and on a new species of</i> Tethya <i>from Shetland; together with observations on the reproduction of sponges commencing from Zygosis of the Sponge-animal</i>

XLIV.—On two new sponges from the Antarctic Sea, and on a new species of Tethya from Shetland; together with observations on the reproduction of sponges commencing from zygosis of the sponge-animal

XLIV.—<i>On two new sponges from the Antarctic Sea, and on a new species of</i> Tethya <i>from Shetland; together with observations on the reproduction of sponges commencing from zygosis of the sponge-animal</i>