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Cellular Basis of Sponge-Sponge Associations
Title
Cellular Basis of Sponge-Sponge Associations.
Creator
Conkling, Megan, Pomponi, Shirley A., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description
Marine sponges interact and coexist with many different organisms. A two-sponge association between Amphimedon erina and Geodia gibberosa commonly occurs in the Florida Keys. Previous studies have only focused on the ecological influence of the association; they did not examine the cellular basis of the association. This association between A. erina and G. gibberosa was used in the development of an in vitro model to further the understanding of the cellular basis of natural sponge-sponge...
Show moreMarine sponges interact and coexist with many different organisms. A two-sponge association between Amphimedon erina and Geodia gibberosa commonly occurs in the Florida Keys. Previous studies have only focused on the ecological influence of the association; they did not examine the cellular basis of the association. This association between A. erina and G. gibberosa was used in the development of an in vitro model to further the understanding of the cellular basis of natural sponge-sponge associations. In this study, sponge cells were cultured individually and in co-cultures and their responses related to apoptosis, cell death, and proliferation were monitored using high content imaging. Co-cultured cells of species that form sponge-sponge associations did not have the same cellular responses compared to co-cultured cells of species that do not form sponge-sponge associations. Protein expression analyses demonstrated that the model that was established does not mimic the cellular response of the association in nature, but this model can be used to test in vitro cellular interactions of sponge species that do not form associations in nature. In addition, the protein expression data that were obtained revealed that sponges use similar apoptotic pathways as humans and suggest that sponge cells may shut down cell cycling in order to repair damaged DNA. This research is a small piece to the puzzle that is sponge cell culture research.
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Date Issued
2017
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004848, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004848
Subject Headings
Sponges--Habitat--Florida., Marine invertebrates--Florida., Aquatic invertebrates--Cultures and culture media., Apoptosis., Cell culture., Symbiosis.
Format
Document (PDF)
Discovery of Loxosomella vivipara (Entoprocta: Loxosomatidae) in the Marine Sponge Hippospongia cf. gossypina (Porifera: Spongiidae) in the Florida Keys
Title
Discovery of Loxosomella vivipara (Entoprocta: Loxosomatidae) in the Marine Sponge Hippospongia cf. gossypina (Porifera: Spongiidae) in the Florida Keys.
Creator
Plunkett, Rachel, Pomponi, Shirley A., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description
Populations of a marine invertebrate symbiont were found on the outer surface and internal spaces of a keratose sponge from a shallow bay in the Florida Keys in May 2014. A total of 24 specimens of the seagrass and reef-dwelling sponge were collected between May 2014 and August 2015 to provide material to identify both host and symbiont, and elucidate information on the nature of the association. Based on a morphological analysis via light microscopy, histology, and scanning electron...
Show morePopulations of a marine invertebrate symbiont were found on the outer surface and internal spaces of a keratose sponge from a shallow bay in the Florida Keys in May 2014. A total of 24 specimens of the seagrass and reef-dwelling sponge were collected between May 2014 and August 2015 to provide material to identify both host and symbiont, and elucidate information on the nature of the association. Based on a morphological analysis via light microscopy, histology, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and 99% similarity in aligned partial sequences from 28S and 18S nuclear ribosomal genes (rDNA), the symbiont was identified as the solitary entoproct Loxosomella vivipara Nielsen, 1966 (Entoprocta: Loxosomatidae). A partial sequence from the Internal Transcribed Spacer Region 2 (ITS2) of L. vivipara was registered to GenBank for the first time. The identity of the host sponge, based on a morphological investigation, is resolved as “velvet sponge” Hippospongia cf. gossypina Duchassing and Michelotti, 1864 (Demospongiae: Spongiidae). This is the first report of an entoproct commensal from Hippospongia cf. gossypina, a sponge that formerly had great commercial value when it was abundant throughout the Bahamas, Florida Keys and Gulf of Mexico. Other common sponge species at the study site were collected to investigate the host specificity of L. vivipara. Evidence that L. vivipara favorably selects the sponges Hippospongia cf. gossypina and Chondrilla nucula over other potential host sponges at the study site is provided. Commensalism is the most plausible justification for this relationship: L. vivipara is dependent on sponges for protection and food particles, while the sponges are unaffected by its presence. Further evidence of host-specific inquilinism is provided for L. vivipara associated with Hippospongia cf. gossypina, but not for L. vivipara associated with C. nucula. An inquilinistic association between an entoproct and sponge is a rare discovery only mentioned in one previous study. Sponge aquiferous qualities such as aperture and canal size, canal and choanocyte chamber arrangement, seawater pumping rate, and food particle size selection are likely factors that inhibit or enable inquilinism in sponge-entoproct associations – a potential topic for future researc
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Date Issued
2016
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004791, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004791
Subject Headings
Marine invertebrates--Florida., Sponges--Habitat--Florida., Marine resources--Florida--Management., Aquatic biology., Entoprocta--Classification.
Format
Document (PDF)
ESTABLISHING A SPONGE HYBRIDOMA FOR THE IN VITRO PRODUCTION OF A MARINE NATURAL PRODUCT
Title
ESTABLISHING A SPONGE HYBRIDOMA FOR THE IN VITRO PRODUCTION OF A MARINE NATURAL PRODUCT.
Creator
Dougan, Cassady, Pomponi, Shirley A., Florida Atlantic University, Department of Marine Science and Oceanography, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description
Marine sponges are one of the most prolific sources of chemical compounds with pharmaceutical importance. To establish a supply of such compounds large enough for clinical development, in vitro production methodology was investigated. Since all sponge cells do not divide in culture, it was hypothesized that the fusion of rapidly dividing cells of a sponge that does not produce any compounds of interest with cells of a nondividing but compound-producing sponge would result in a hybridoma that...
Show moreMarine sponges are one of the most prolific sources of chemical compounds with pharmaceutical importance. To establish a supply of such compounds large enough for clinical development, in vitro production methodology was investigated. Since all sponge cells do not divide in culture, it was hypothesized that the fusion of rapidly dividing cells of a sponge that does not produce any compounds of interest with cells of a nondividing but compound-producing sponge would result in a hybridoma that produces the compound of interest. In this study, hybridomas have been produced with cells of two marine sponges, Axinella corrugata, which produces the antitumor compound stevensine, and Geodia neptuni, which divides rapidly in a nutrient medium optimized for sponge cell culture. Successful hybridization and subsequent cell division and in vitro stevensine production may unlock the potential for sustainable mass production of other sponge-derived compounds.
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Date Issued
2022
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00014024
Subject Headings
Marine natural products, Sponges, Hybridomas, In vitro
Format
Document (PDF)
EVALUATION OF 3-D CULTURE METHODS FOR MARINE SPONGES
Title
EVALUATION OF 3-D CULTURE METHODS FOR MARINE SPONGES.
Creator
Urban-Gedamke, Elizabeth, Pomponi, Shirley A., Florida Atlantic University, Department of Marine Science and Oceanography, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description
Marine sponges are economically and environmentally valuable, but restoration, commercial, and biomedical demands exceed what wild populations and aquaculture can provide. In vitro culture of sponge cells is a promising alternative, but has remained elusive until recent breakthroughs involving improved nutrient medium M1 in two-dimensional culture. The advantages of three-dimensional over two-dimensional cell culture have been increasingly recognized. Here we report the successful 21-day...
Show moreMarine sponges are economically and environmentally valuable, but restoration, commercial, and biomedical demands exceed what wild populations and aquaculture can provide. In vitro culture of sponge cells is a promising alternative, but has remained elusive until recent breakthroughs involving improved nutrient medium M1 in two-dimensional culture. The advantages of three-dimensional over two-dimensional cell culture have been increasingly recognized. Here we report the successful 21-day culture of cells from the marine sponge Geodia neptuni using multiple three-dimensional cell culture methods: FibraCel© disks, thin hydrogel layers, gel micro droplets, and spheroid cell culture. These methods performed comparably to two-dimensional control cultures, and each method offers advantages for restoration or in vitro applications using sponge cells. Further optimization of these methods may lead to the ability to culture fully functioning sponges from dissociated, cryopreserved cells, which will reduce the need for wild harvest of sponge tissues for commercial, restoration, and biomedical purposes.
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Date Issued
2021
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013726
Subject Headings
Sponges, Cell Culture--methods
Format
Document (PDF)
REEF WARS: MONITORING AND PREDICTING PHASE SHIFTS ON FLORIDA CORAL REEFS
Title
REEF WARS: MONITORING AND PREDICTING PHASE SHIFTS ON FLORIDA CORAL REEFS.
Creator
Conkling, Megan, Pomponi, Shirley A., Hindle, Tobin, Florida Atlantic University, Department of Geosciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description
Reefs off the coast of Florida face threats from stressors associated with climate change which leads to phase shifts. Under rapid climate change, a clear understanding of how reefs and their benthic organisms respond is still lacking and needs to be investigated. Using in situ imagery, a sponge cell model, and long-term benthic biota surveys, the effects of climate change on reef dynamics were explored in this dissertation project. Results from the in situ imagery found that differences in...
Show moreReefs off the coast of Florida face threats from stressors associated with climate change which leads to phase shifts. Under rapid climate change, a clear understanding of how reefs and their benthic organisms respond is still lacking and needs to be investigated. Using in situ imagery, a sponge cell model, and long-term benthic biota surveys, the effects of climate change on reef dynamics were explored in this dissertation project. Results from the in situ imagery found that differences in spectral signatures are found between functional groups (i.e., corals, sponges, and algae) and different species from substrate. Results based on a sponge cell model and transcriptomics data have found a resilience of these sponges to the predicted thermal extremes. Results from benthic biota surveys suggested that depth and light attenuation have the largest influence on the predicted distribution of corals, sponges, and algae at Pulley Ridge. Climate change has been impacting reef benthic biota starting at the organismal scale up to the reef scale. This research demonstrates the importance of monitoring reefs at a finer scale and determining the thresholds and limits of benthic biota to projected thermal extremes to better inform resource managers to preserve these irreplaceable ecosystems.
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Date Issued
2023
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00014323
Subject Headings
Reefs--Florida, Climate change, Coral reef ecology
Format
Document (PDF)