|
Description:
Project Manager:
Cheryl Woodley
Project Years:
2021
2022
2023
Project Summary:
Currently, 60% of the world's reefs are degraded or destroyed; by 2050, reefs are predicted to be functionally extinct, without intervention. Substantial investments have been made in conventional management strategies; however, they are proving insufficient for coral recovery. In 2018, NOAA commissioned the National Academies of Sciences (NAS) to review and evaluate strategies that could curb declines, and enhance recovery and sustainability of corals now and into the future. The NAS identified 23 interventions, categorized as Genetic & Reproductive, Population, Physiological, and Environmental. NOAA has prioritized 13 of the 23 intervention actions for research and development, field-testing, or operational intervention in their draft Action Plan on Coral Interventions. Our proposal addresses the CRCP Restoration Pillar and jurisdictional priorities for innovative restoration interventions. Specifically our research addresses the NAS intervention action (prioritized by NOAA): "Improve techniques to support interventions" and specific research needs: 1) Develop methods to improve recruitment and survivorship for corals that are released, planted, relocated, or settled on reefs at the reef scale. 2) Develop extensive, freely available databases on coral communities, hosts, symbionts, and microbiomes to support studies on genotype-phenotype relationships, population structure, and community dynamics.Improving recruitment and survivorship for corals is predicated on having reproductively fit and compatible parents, able to undergo normal gametogenesis, and sexual reproduction and development. We are currently examining whether kinship of coral parents affects gamete fertilization in Acropora cervicornis and Orbicella faveolata (proj # 31230). We have shown that different parental crosses have distinct outcomes, more so with A. cervicornis than O. faveolata. One of our collaborators is addressing whether age matters for successful fertilization. In continuation of our research into improving sexual reproduction for coral restoration, we are proposing to address two new avenues of research: 1) Using proteomics to characterize gametic compatibility factors (gamete recognition proteins) to improve coral nursery broodstock selection, propagation, and outplanting strategies. The objective is to identify protein biomarkers that can be used to screen coral colonies for egg/sperm fertilization compatibility, once the information is validated, future R&D can engineer rapid field-based screening tools.2) Examining suitability of telomere length and telomerase activity as indicators of reproductive dysfunction and/or senescence in restoration-targeted corals. Telomeres are repetitive sequences that cap the ends of chromosomes and telomere integrity is maintained by the enzyme telomerase. Shortening of telomeres can lead to senescence and a myriad of cellular dysfunctions. The objective of this research is to compare telomere length and telomerase activity from A. palmata parents of known ages and/or genotypes from reference and contaminated sites. Companion studies by collaborators are conducting molecular aging studies coupled with fertilization efficiency of specific genotype crosses. Once a bioindicator is validated in A. palmata, the technology can adapted for other species being targeted for restoration. This body of research will assist restoration practitioners in selecting broodstock for nursery operations as well as selecting outplanting sites to enhance sexual reproduction.This project involves several collaborations with College of Charleston and NIST for proteomic investigations; CARMABI Research Station (Curaçao), Iliana Baums' Lab (Penn State) and Margaret Miller (SECORE) for examining telomerase and telomeres; and TBD (CRF, FLAQ, Mote Marine Lab) (A. cervicornis) and NMFS SERO (O. faveolata) to examine site-specific reproductive differences across sites.This project will result in multiple products: raw DNA sequencing and proteomic data to identify biomarkers for different aspects of reproductive impairments. We anticipate a peer-reviewed publication will result from this project.
Expected Outcome:
This project will provide raw peptide reads with open access for 'biomining' availability and identify candidate gamete recognition proteins as potential markers of to assist in improving reproductive success. In addition, the use of telomere length or telomerase activity will be explored as a potential avenue for determining reproductive fitness of corals or pre-mature senescence. If successful, a report will be generated documenting methods for determining telomere length and telomerase activity in one coral species.
Project Locations:
- Florida
- Puerto Rico
- U.S. Virgin Islands
Project Category:
Restoration
Project Status:
Funding Ended
Associated Products:
|
