NOAA 'Omics Seminar Series (January 18, 2023): Distribution of apicomplexans in octocorals

This seminar is part of the NOAA 'Omics Seminar Series, which takes place on the third Wednesday of every month. 'Omics describes a suite of cutting-edge tools used to analyze DNA, RNA, proteins, or metabolites.
Date: January 18, 2023
Title: Distribution of apicomplexans in shallow and deep-sea octocorals of the Caribbean and North Atlantic
Presenter: Akacia Halliday-Isaac
Abstract: Apicomplexans include the causative agents of globally important human diseases such as malaria and cryptosporidiosis and infections such as toxoplasmosis. Apicomplexans occur in vertebrate and invertebrate hosts, in both terrestrial and aquatic habitats. In the Caribbean, hard coral cover has dramatically declined while octocorals remain common, making octocorals the likely future of Caribbean reefs. Apicomplexans were first documented in corals in 1984 with the occurrence of Nematopsis spp. in colonies of the scleractinian Porites porites in Puerto Rico. Subsequently, other reports of apicomplexan existence in corals followed, such as apicomplexan oocysts infecting nine scleractinian coral species across the Caribbean and an apicomplexan coccidian protozoan occurring within bleached Orbicella annularis species complex samples. Subsequent studies focused on this apicomplexan (later named Corallicola aquarius) and showed that this apicomplexan is often associated with corals and the surrounding reef. This indicates a larger need to examine octocoral species for alternative symbionts. These potential alternate symbionts could play a part in the octocoral’s response to environmental changes. Deciphering the prevalence of the dinoflagellate relatives in octocorals and characterizing the bacterial microbiome in additional octocoral species are integral to understanding octocorals’ continued success in the Caribbean. The goal of my research is to determine the existence and prevalence of apicomplexans in octocorals from the Caribbean and North Atlantic using field collections, sampling of wet and dry preserved museum coral samples, and genetic techniques. The apicomplexan Corallicola aquarius and Anthozoaphila gnarlus (present in 1 sample) were found across 14 species of the octocorals.