Multi-omic characterization of mechanisms contributing to rapid phenotypic plasticity in the coral Acropora cervicornis under divergent environments

• Published in: Coral reefs Vol. 43; no. 1; pp. 53 - 66
• Main Authors: Rodriguez-Casariego, Javier A., Mercado-Molina, Alex, Lemos, Leila Soledade, Quinete, Natalia Soares, Bellantuono, Anthony, Rodriguez-Lanetty, Mauricio, Sabat, Alberto, Eirin-Lopez, Jose M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.02.2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acclimation; Acclimatization; Acropora cervicornis; Anthropocene; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Clones; Coral reefs; Corals; Environmental changes; Environmental conditions; Epigenetics; Feeding behavior; Feeding habits; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Genotypes; Life Sciences; Microbial activity; Microbiomes; Microorganisms; Oceanography; Phenotypes; Phenotypic plasticity; Physiological responses; Physiology; Plastic properties; Plasticity; Symbionts; Transcriptomes; Lipidome; Transcriptome; Epigenetics; Phenotypic plasticity; Symbiodiniaceae; Staghorn coral; WGBS; Microbiome
• DOI: 10.1007/s00338-023-02446-9
• ISSN: 0722-4028

Phenotypic plasticity is defined as a property of individual genotypes to produce different phenotypes when exposed to different environmental conditions. This ability may be expressed at behavioral, biochemical, physiological, and/or developmental levels, exerting direct influence over species' demographic performance. In reef-building corals, a group critically threatened by global change in the Anthropocene, non-genetic mechanisms (i.e., epigenetic and microbiome variation) have been shown to participate in plastic physiological responses to environmental change. Yet, the precise way in which these mechanisms interact, contribute to such responses, and their adaptive potential is still obscure. The present work aims to fill this gap by using a multi-omics approach to elucidate the contribution and interconnection of the mechanisms modulating phenotypic plasticity in staghorn coral ( Acropora cervicornis ) clones subject to different depth conditions. Results show changes in lipidome, epigenome and transcriptome, but not in symbiotic and microbial communities. In addition, a potential shift toward a more heterotrophic feeding behavior was evidenced in corals at the deeper site. These observations are consistent with a multi-mechanism modulation of rapid acclimation in corals, underscoring the complexity of this process and the importance of a multifactorial approach to inform potential intervention to enhance coral adaptive capacity.