Variation in expression of thermal stress genes in massive Porites harrisoni corals in the Persian Gulf

Coral reefs cover only a small fraction of the ocean’s surface but have more biodiversity than any other marine habitats. These ecosystems are highly vulnerable to small changes in the physical and chemical properties of the water column. Increasing ocean temperatures sometimes exceed their physiological tolerance and leads to loss of symbiotic algae, reduced fitness for the coral host, and decreases in coral cover. In this study, the expression changes of heat shock proteins and apoptosis genes in scleractinian coral Porites harrisoni, which were collected in August during low tide conditions concurrent with peak daily temperature from Hengam Island, were investigated. To evaluate the potential for acclimation, healthy fragments were taken from the deep and relatively cold site and transplanted to the shallow site. Gene expression levels were analyzed using Quantitative real-time PCR. A significant upregulation of heat shock proteins in response to heat stress was identified as the most important defense mechanism in response to heat stress. Significant downregulation of the apoptotic gene expression was observed in acclimation experiment samples, which indicates the compatibility of the deep corals to thermal changes. The results suggest that the studied corals are thermal tolerant compared with similar species in other tropical and subtropical regions. Therefore, they can be classified as a super-coral. The use of this coral in regions where native corals have been subjected to extinction, might be a key strategy to maintain the coral community.

کلیدواژه ها:

Global warming ، Gene expression ، Heat shock proteins ، Apoptosis ، Acclimation