Meeting Abstract

P1.37  Thursday, Jan. 3  Differential gene expression of diseased and healthy corals ANDERSON, David*; PEDERSEN, Megan; New College of Florida; New College of Florida david.anderson@ncf.edu

Incidences of coral disease have rapidly increased over the past three decades, adversely affecting the health of coral reefs. Research on coral disease has focused on the identification of causative agents through characterization of the microbial ecology associated with diseased and healthy corals. However, few researchers have investigated possible �immune-like� responses produced by corals. In this study we hypothesized that there are specific responses to disease manifested by corals during periods of infection and exposure. During July of 2007 in Cayos Cochinos, Honduras, mucus samples were collected from diseased and healthy corals of the species Diploria strigosa and Siderastrea siderea , which were putatively affected by White Plague Disease and Dark Spot Syndrome, respectively. Preliminary research demonstrated that coral RNA is isolatable from surface layer mucus samples. From condensed mucus samples preserved in RNAlater (Ambion), we isolated coral RNA to analyze gene expression profiles. RT-PCR products were analyzed using gel electrophoresis, and fragments that were differentially associated with diseased and healthy states were isolated and sequenced. Sequenced cDNA fragments of coral origin were used to design primers for Real-Time PCR to analyze differential gene expression quantitatively, with the goal of identifying �immune responses� to disease.