Coral Genomics: An assessment of metabolic pathways and genes influencing coral bleaching. Implications for the development of hydra as a model organism.

Submission Number: 138
Submission ID: 242
Submission UUID: 952bb6e8-0d99-4235-aef4-8d11bb26bd7c
Submission URI: /form/project

Created: Fri, 01/28/2022 - 16:55
Completed: Fri, 01/28/2022 - 16:55
Changed: Thu, 06/02/2022 - 16:39

Remote IP address: 67.176.36.130
Submitted by: Anita Schwartz
Language: English

Is draft: No
Webform: Project
Coral Genomics: An assessment of metabolic pathways and genes influencing coral bleaching. Implications for the development of hydra as a model organism.
CAREERS
CoralPolyp_SI.jpg
genomics (537)
Complete

Project Leader

Milton Muldrow
{Empty}
{Empty}

Project Personnel

{Empty}
Natalie Vazquez Beales
{Empty}

Project Information

This project is predicted to be a multi-semester project to broadly assess genes metabolic function found in both humans, coral (Acropora palmata, A. cervicornis, A. millepora) and the hydra Aiptasia pallida.

The first goal is to train students on basic coral biology, and issues influencing coral decline. Students will also be trained to perform blast analyses.

Second, as a lab, we aim to characterize our own strain of Aiptasia, including:
1. Develop inoculated and bleached strains, along with conducting imaging of the strains.
2. Conduct genetic sequencing of the hydra. This initial goal is to provide gene sequencing training, for both the instructor and student, and gather preliminary sequencing data. This would be a new competency to the lab.
3. Test novel substances on hydra hypothesized to influence both growth rate and bleaching resilience.
This will include development of experimental design.
Aiptasia pallida is a model organism for coral reef studies, and these cnidarians are an interesting potential model organism for humans in comparison to the fruit fly. Implications here include:
* potential insight into coral bleaching mechanisms
* insight into human evolution and assessment of potential model organisms
* development of hydra as a model organisms for both corals and humans. Hydra are already well developed as coral models, although this needs significant development.

Lastly, students will examine the DARWIN cluster and how it might aid project development.

Project Information Subsection

A project summary and assessment of evolutionary relationships among hydra and humans in regard to metabolic genes.
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
Wilmington University
{Empty}
CR-University of Delaware
02/07/2022
No
Already behind3Start date is flexible
3
03/09/2022
05/11/2022
  • Milestone Title: Beginning
    Milestone Description: Examine hydra and coral metabolic function as well as learn how to both access and interpret bioinformatic data (ex: BLAST). Give a Launch presentation.
    Completion Date Goal: 2022-03-09
    Actual Completion Date: 2022-03-09
  • Milestone Title: Middle
    Milestone Description: Apply understanding of both hydra and coral metabolic function and bioinformatics data formatting and databases to conduct an analysis on genetic implications of coral metabolic function.
    Completion Date Goal: 2022-04-13
    Actual Completion Date: 2022-04-13
  • Milestone Title: End
    Milestone Description: In end, the student will interpret data and analysis to derive conclusions, and develop new hypotheses based on the analysis. Student should develop a poster. Give a Wrap-up presentation.
    Completion Date Goal: 2022-05-11
    Actual Completion Date: 2022-05-11
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}
{Empty}

Final Report

Here, the student was able to perform some analyses we were long looking to conduct. Their work answered key questions regarding our research.

Natalie has received two previous NASA Space Grant awards (NASA Grant NNX15AII9H), and will continue her work this summer examining the basic biology and genomics of corals, along with exploring ways to make them more robust to climate change via genetic engineering.
Examination of sirtuin genes may have broad implications of these highly conserved genes throughout the animal kingdom.
We did not utilize any new physical resources, although CAREERS did introduce us to the DARWIN resource, which we may incorporate in our research over time.
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Our goal is to assist corals in becoming more resilient to climate change. If we are successful, this would have broad societal benefits, including economic, cultural and intrinsic benefits.
From Natalie’s wrap presentation:

We were able to access and interpret the bioinformatic data collected, when comparing the sequences.
We were able to analyze Sirtuins proteins and transcripts.
We still have to analyze the genetic implication of what actually triggers the stress. Meaning to have a comparison of a coral before and after the stress.
From Natalie’s wrap presentation:

We can determine that there’s a lot of similarities in the Query Cover between Aipatasia and human sirtuins, in that they may overlap in their metabolic functions. These functions of gene maintenance and metabolism may influence bleaching.