scholarly journals Electrophysiological evidence for light-activated cation transport in calcifying corals

2019 ◽  
Vol 286 (1896) ◽  
pp. 20182444 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Taubner ◽  
Marian Y. Hu ◽  
Anton Eisenhauer ◽  
Markus Bleich
Keyword(s):  
Ion Transport ◽  
Ussing Chamber ◽  
Light Response ◽  
Coral Host ◽  
Hermatypic Coral ◽  
Stylophora Pistillata ◽  
Hermatypic Corals ◽  
Net Flux ◽  
Endosymbiotic Algae ◽  
Microelectrode Measurements

Light has been demonstrated to enhance calcification rates in hermatypic coral species. To date, it remains unresolved whether calcifying epithelia change their ion transport activity during illumination, and whether such a process is mediated by the endosymbiotic algae or can be controlled by the coral host itself. Using a modified Ussing chamber in combination with H + sensitive microelectrode measurements, the present work demonstrates that light triggers the generation of a skeleton positive potential of up to 0.9 mV in the hermatypic coral Stylophora pistillata . This potential is generated by a net flux of cations towards the skeleton and reaches its maximum at blue (450 nm) light. The effects of pharmacological inhibitors targeting photosynthesis 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea (DCMU) and anion transport 4,4'-diisothiocyano-2,2'-stilbenedisulfonic acid (DIDS) were investigated by pH microelectrode measurements in coral tissues demonstrating a rapid decrease in tissue pH under illumination. However, these inhibitors showed no effect on the electrophysiological light response of the coral host. By contrast, metabolic inhibition by cyanide and deoxyglucose reversibly inhibited the light-induced cation flux towards the skeleton. These results suggest that ion transport across coral epithelia is directly triggered by blue light, independent of photosynthetic activity of algal endosymbionts. Measurements of this very specific and quantifiable physiological response can provide parameters to identify photoreception mechanisms and will help to broaden our understanding of the mechanistic link between light stimulation and epithelial ion transport, potentially relevant for calcification in hermatypic corals.

scholarly journals Five new coexisting species of copepod crustaceans of the genus Spaniomolgus (Poecilostomatoida: Rhynchomolgidae), symbionts of the stony coral Stylophora pistillata (Scleractinia)

ZooKeys ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 791 ◽  
pp. 71-95
Author(s):  
Mercedes Conradi ◽  
Eugenia Bandera ◽  
Sofya V. Mudrova ◽  
Viatcheslav N. Ivanenko
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Scanning Electron Microscopy ◽  
New Species ◽  
Shallow Water ◽  
Hermatypic Coral ◽  
Stylophora Pistillata ◽  
Stony Coral ◽  
Hermatypic Corals ◽  
Coexisting Species ◽  
Scanning Electron

Spaniomolgus is a symbiotic genus of copepods of the poecilostomatoid family Rhynchomolgidae and is known to be associated with shallow-water reef-building hermatypic corals. Three species of this genus were previously found only in washings of Acropora and Stylophora in northern Madagascar. Four coral morphotypes of Stylophorapistillata (Pocilloporidae) were collected by SCUBA at 1 to 28 m depth in five sites in the Saudi Arabian Red Sea in 2013. Copepods found on these colonies were studied using light, confocal and scanning electron microscopy. Five new, and one known, species of the genus Spaniomolgus were discovered in washings and inside the galls of the hermatypic coral S.pistillata. The description of these new species (Spaniomolgusglobussp. n., S.stylophorussp. n., S.dentatussp. n., S.maculatussp. n., and S.acutussp. n.) and a key for the identification of all of its congeners is provided herein.

Basolateral Cl− uptake mechanisms in Xenopus laevis lung epithelium

2010 ◽  
Vol 299 (1) ◽  
pp. R92-R100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Berger ◽  
Martin Hardt ◽  
Wolfgang G. Clauss ◽  
Martin Fronius
Keyword(s):  
Xenopus Laevis ◽  
Ion Transport ◽  
Anion Exchanger ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Ussing Chamber ◽  
Short Circuit Current ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Lung Epithelium ◽  
Active Ion Transport ◽  
Uptake Mechanisms

A thin liquid layer covers the lungs of air-breathing vertebrates. Active ion transport processes via the pulmonary epithelial cells regulate the maintenance of this layer. This study focuses on basolateral Cl− uptake mechanisms in native lungs of Xenopus laevis and the involvement of the Na+/K+/2 Cl− cotransporter (NKCC) and HCO3−/Cl− anion exchanger (AE), in particular. Western blot analysis and immunofluorescence staining revealed the expression of the NKCC protein in the Xenopus lung. Ussing chamber experiments demonstrated that the NKCC inhibitors (bumetanide and furosemide) were ineffective at blocking the cotransporter under basal conditions, as well as under pharmacologically stimulated Cl−-secreting conditions (forskolin and chlorzoxazone application). However, functional evidence for the NKCC was detected by generating a transepithelial Cl− gradient. Further, we were interested in the involvement of the HCO3−/Cl− anion exchanger to transepithelial ion transport processes. Basolateral application of DIDS, an inhibitor of the AE, resulted in a significantly decreased the short-circuit current (ISC). The effect of DIDS was diminished by acetazolamide and reduced by increased external HCO3− concentrations. Cl− secretion induced by forskolin was decreased by DIDS, but this effect was abolished in the presence of HCO3−. These experiments indicate that the AE at least partially contributes to Cl− secretion. Taken together, our data show that in Xenopus lung epithelia, the AE, rather than the NKCC, is involved in basolateral Cl− uptake, which contrasts with the common model for Cl− secretion in pulmonary epithelia.

scholarly journals Enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC)—Secreted Serine Protease EspP Stimulates Electrogenic Ion Transport in Human Colonoid Monolayers

Toxins ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 351 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Tse ◽  
Julie In ◽  
Jianyi Yin ◽  
Mark Donowitz ◽  
Michele Doucet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ion Transport ◽  
Serine Protease ◽  
Shiga Toxin ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Ussing Chamber ◽  
Adult Stem Cell ◽  
Short Circuit Current ◽  
Watery Diarrhea ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Electrogenic Ion Transport

One of the characteristic manifestations of Shiga-toxin-producing Escherichia coli (E. coli) infection in humans, including EHEC and Enteroaggregative E. coli O104:H4, is watery diarrhea. However, neither Shiga toxin nor numerous components of the type-3 secretion system have been found to independently elicit fluid secretion. We used the adult stem-cell-derived human colonoid monolayers (HCM) to test whether EHEC-secreted extracellular serine protease P (EspP), a member of the serine protease family broadly expressed by diarrheagenic E. coli can act as an enterotoxin. We applied the Ussing chamber/voltage clamp technique to determine whether EspP stimulates electrogenic ion transport indicated by a change in short-circuit current (Isc). EspP stimulates Isc in HCM. The EspP-stimulated Isc does not require protease activity, is not cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR)-mediated, but is partially Ca2+-dependent. EspP neutralization with a specific antibody reduces its potency in stimulating Isc. Serine Protease A, secreted by Enteroaggregative E. coli, also stimulates Isc in HCM, but this current is CFTR-dependent. In conclusion, EspP stimulates colonic CFTR-independent active ion transport and may be involved in the pathophysiology of EHEC diarrhea. Serine protease toxins from E. coli pathogens appear to serve as enterotoxins, potentially significantly contributing to watery diarrhea.

scholarly journals Ocean acidification increases photosynthate translocation in a coral–dinoflagellates symbiosis

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Tremblay ◽  
M. Fine ◽  
J. F. Maguer ◽  
R. Grover ◽  
C. Ferrier-Pagès
Keyword(s):  
Coral Species ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Coral Host ◽  
Climate Change Scenarios ◽  
Symbiotic Association ◽  
Stylophora Pistillata ◽  
Gross Photosynthesis ◽  
Total Percentage ◽  
Carbon Translocation ◽  
Tropical Coral

Abstract. This study has examined the effect of an increased seawater pCO2 on the rates of photosynthesis and carbon translocation in the scleractinian coral species Stylophora pistillata using a new model based on 13C-labelling of the photosynthetic products. Symbiont photosynthesis contributes for a large part of the carbon acquisition in tropical coral species and is therefore an important process that may determine their survival under climate change scenarios. Nubbins of S. pistillata were maintained for six months under two pHs (8.1 and 7.2). Rates of photosynthesis and respiration of the symbiotic association and of isolated symbionts were assessed at each pH. The fate of 13C-photosynthates was then followed in the symbionts and the coral host for 48 h. Nubbins maintained at pH 7.2 presented a lower areal symbiont concentration, lower areal rates of gross photosynthesis, and lower carbon incorporation rates compared to nubbins maintained at pH 8.1, therefore suggesting that the total carbon acquisition was lower in this first set of nubbins. However, the total percentage of carbon translocated to the host, as well as the amount of carbon translocated per symbiont cell was significantly higher under pH 7.2 than under pH 8.1 (70% at pH 7.2 versus 60% at pH 8.1), so that the total amount of photosynthetic carbon received by the coral host was equivalent under both pHs (5.5 to 6.1 μg C cm−2 h−1). Although the carbon budget of the host was unchanged, symbionts acquired less carbon for their own needs (0.6 against 1.8 μg C cm−2 h−1), explaining the overall decrease in symbiont concentration at low pH. In the long-term, this decrease might have important consequences for the survival of corals under an acidification stress.

The application of Ussing chambers for determining the impact of microbes and probiotics on intestinal ion transport

2013 ◽  
Vol 91 (9) ◽  
pp. 663-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin W. Lomasney ◽  
Niall P. Hyland
Keyword(s):  
Ion Transport ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Ussing Chamber ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Mechanisms Of Action ◽  
Ussing Chambers ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Intestinal Ion Transport

Host–microbe interactions have gained considerable attention in recent years with regards to their role in various organic disorders and diseases. In particular, research efforts have focused on the intestinal microbiota, where the largest and most diverse populations not only co-exist with the host, but also directly influence the state and function of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Moreover, both human and animal studies alike are now beginning to show a positive influence of probiotic bacteria on GI disorders associated with diarrhoea or constipation. Diarrheagenic GI diseases, such as those caused by Vibreo cholera or enterpathogenic Eschericia coli, have well-characterised interactions with the host that explain much of the observed symptoms, in particular severe diarrhoea. However, the mechanisms of action of nonpathogenic bacteria or probiotics on host physiology are less clearly understood. In the context of defining the mechanisms of action of probiotics in vitro, the Ussing chamber has proven to be a particularly useful tool. Here, we will present data from several studies that have defined molecular targets for microbes and putative probiotics in the regulation of intestinal secretory and absorptive function, and we will discuss these in the context of their application in pathogen- or inflammation-induced alterations in intestinal ion transport.

Capsaicin-sensitive afferent nerves activate submucosal secretomotor neurons in guinea pig ileum

1995 ◽  
Vol 269 (2) ◽  
pp. G203-G209 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Vanner ◽  
W. K. MacNaughton
Keyword(s):  
Guinea Pig ◽  
Ion Transport ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Ussing Chamber ◽  
Sensory Nerve ◽  
Nerve Fibers ◽  
Sensory Nerves ◽  
Guinea Pig Ileum ◽  
Secretomotor Neurons

This study examined whether capsaicin-sensitive sensory nerves regulate intestinal ion transport using both Ussing chamber and intracellular recording techniques in in vitro submucosal preparations from the guinea pig ileum. In Ussing chamber studies, serosal application of capsaicin (20 nM-20 microM) evoked a biphasic dose-dependent increase in short-circuit current (Isc) (maximal effective concentration 200 nM and 2 microM, respectively). In chloride-free buffer, capsaicin responses were significantly reduced. Capsaicin evoked little or no response when extrinsic sensory nerve fibers had been surgically removed and tetrodotoxin and low-calcium and high-magnesium solutions blocked responses to capsaicin. In epithelial preparations devoid of submucosal neurons, capsaicin had virtually no effect, suggesting that responses evoked by capsaicin-sensitive nerves result from activation of submucosal secretomotor neurons. Intracellular recordings from single submucosal neurons demonstrated that superfusion with capsaicin (2 microM) depolarized neurons with an associated decreased conductance. Depolarizations were completely desensitized when capsaicin was reapplied, but synaptic inputs were unaffected. This study suggests that capsaicin-sensitive nerves can regulate ion transport in the gastrointestinal tract by release of neurotransmitter(s) that activate submucosal secretomotor neurons.

Effects of certain steroids on bioelectric current of isolated frog skin

1961 ◽  
Vol 200 (4) ◽  
pp. 797-800 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert D. McAfee ◽  
William Locke
Keyword(s):  
Ion Transport ◽  
Frog Skin ◽  
Sodium Succinate ◽  
Sodium Ion ◽  
Net Flux ◽  
Enzymatic Pathways

2-methyl-9 α-fluorohydrocortisone and hydrocortisone sodium succinate increase both the rate and duration and, therefore, total quantity of ion transported in the isolated short-circuited frog skin measured over a 24-hour period. The ion transport is directly related to the bioelectric current generated, and based on Ussing's work, is assumed identical to the net flux of sodium ion. These steroids may make available transport energy that is not available to the untreated half of the skin by rerouting enzymatic pathways or by lowering the resistance of the membrane to ion transport and thereby more efficiently utilizing the energy available for transport.

scholarly journals The mushroom coral as a habitat

2011 ◽  
Vol 92 (4) ◽  
pp. 647-663 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bert W. Hoeksema ◽  
Sancia E.T. Van der Meij ◽  
Charles H.J.M. Fransen
Keyword(s):  
Coral Species ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Coral Host ◽  
Associated Fauna ◽  
Reef Corals ◽  
Symbiotic Relationships ◽  
Mushroom Coral ◽  
Endosymbiotic Algae ◽  
Associated Species ◽  
Shallow Seas

The evolution of symbiotic relationships involving reef corals has had much impact on tropical marine biodiversity. Because of their endosymbiotic algae (zooxanthellae) corals can grow fast in tropical shallow seas where they form reefs that supply food, substrate and shelter for other organisms. Many coral symbionts are host-specific, depending on particular coral species for their existence. Some of these animals have become popular objects for underwater photographers and aquarists, whereas others are hardly noticed or considered pests. Loss of a single coral host species also leads to the disappearance of some of its associated fauna. In the present study we show which mushroom corals (Scleractinia: Fungiidae) are known to act as hosts for other organisms, such as acoel flatworms, copepods, barnacles, gall crabs, pontoniine shrimps, mytilid bivalves, epitoniid snails, coralliophilid snails, fish and certain types of zooxanthellae. Several of these associated organisms appear to be host-specific whereas other species are generalists and not even necessarily restricted to fungiid hosts.Heliofungia actiniformisis one of the most hospitable coral species known with a recorded associated fauna consisting of at least 23 species. The availability of a phylogeny reconstruction of the Fungiidae enables comparisons of closely related species of mushroom corals regarding their associated fauna. Application of a phylogenetic ecological analysis indicates that the presence or absence of associated organisms is evolutionarily derived or habitat-induced. Some associations appear to be restricted to certain evolutionary lineages within the Fungiidae, whereas the absence of associated species may be determined by ecomorphological traits of the host corals, such as coral dimensions (coral diameter and thickness) and polyp shape (tentacle size).

Absorption and utilization of radiant energy by light- and shade-adapted colonies of the hermatypic coral Stylophora pistillata

1984 ◽  
Vol 222 (1227) ◽  
pp. 203-214 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Quantum Yield ◽  
Absorption Coefficient ◽  
Red Sea ◽  
Radiant Energy ◽  
Quantum Yields ◽  
Hermatypic Coral ◽  
Specific Absorption Coefficient ◽  
Low Light ◽  
Stylophora Pistillata ◽  
Photosynthetic Rates

The specific absorption coefficient for chlorophyll a ( k c ) was measured in zooxanthellae from light- and shade-adapted colonies of the hermatypic coral, Stylophora pistillata from the Red Sea. These data, together with measurements of photosynthetic rates and irradiance, were used to compare the quantum yields of photosynthesis in these corals. Quantum yields varied from 0.10 CO 2 per quantum at low light to less than 0.001 CO 2 per quantum at maximal irradiances. Shade-adapted corals had higher pigment content, which allowed them to have twice as much light harvesting capability as light-adapted corals. In all cases, however, the quantum yield of the light-adapted corals was higher by a factor of about 1.5.

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