Bicarbonate transporters in corals point towards a key step in the evolution of cnidarian calcification
Type | Article | ||||||||||||
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Date | 2015-06 | ||||||||||||
Language | English | ||||||||||||
Author(s) | Zoccola Didier1, Ganot Philippe1, Bertucci Anthony2, Caminiti-Segonds Natacha1, Techer Nathalie1, Voolstra Christian R.3, Aranda Manuel3, Tambutte Eric1, Allemand Denis1, Casey Joseph R.4, Tambutte Sylvie1 | ||||||||||||
Affiliation(s) | 1 : Centre Scientifique de Monaco, 8 quai Antoine Ier, Monaco, 98000, Monaco 2 : ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia Anthony Bertucci 3 : Red Sea Research Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia 4 : Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2H7, Canada |
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Source | Scientific Reports (2045-2322) (Nature Publishing Group), 2015-06 , Vol. 5 , P. 9983 (11p.) | ||||||||||||
DOI | 10.1038/srep09983 | ||||||||||||
WOS© Times Cited | 122 | ||||||||||||
Abstract | The bicarbonate ion (HCO3-) is involved in two major physiological processes in corals, biomineralization and photosynthesis, yet no molecular data on bicarbonate transporters are available. Here, we characterized plasma membrane-type HCO3- transporters in the scleractinian coral Stylophora pistillata. Eight solute carrier (SLC) genes were found in the genome: five homologs of mammalian-type SLC4 family members, and three of mammalian-type SLC26 family members. Using relative expression analysis and immunostaining, we analyzed the cellular distribution of these transporters and conducted phylogenetic analyses to determine the extent of conservation among cnidarian model organisms. Our data suggest that the SLC4 gamma isoform is specific to scleractinian corals and responsible for supplying HCO3- to the site of calcification. Taken together, SLC4 gamma appears to be one of the key genes for skeleton building in corals, which bears profound implications for our understanding of coral biomineralization and the evolution of scleractinian corals within cnidarians. |
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