This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: In the vast, nutrient-poor regions of the world's oceans, there is a constant struggle for survival. Yet tiny organisms known as Collodaria have thrived there for millions of years.
These Collodaria host microscopically small algae that are essential for survival. A research team at the University of Jena has uncovered the metabolic secret behind the symbiosis and provides entirely new insights into marine ecosystems. The findings are published in the journal Nature Communications.
Collodaria are marine single-celled organisms, with some species forming large colonies in the sunlit upper ocean. Within their colonies, Collodaria host hundreds to thousands of microscopic algae. This close biological association, known as a "holobiont," functions like a perfectly coordinated shared household.
The study shows that the algae supply energy-rich sugars through photosynthesis. In return, the Collodaria provide protection to their microscopic tenants and supply essential nutrients that they obtain directly from seawater. Both partners benefit from this collaboration.
Until now, scientific hypotheses about how algae support their Collodaria hosts have varied widely. Because Collodaria are very fragile organisms that cannot currently be maintained in laboratory cultures, the Jena team adopted an innovative field-based approach to elucidate the processes. Georg Pohnert, professor of analytical chemistry at Friedrich Schiller University Jena, collected fresh colonies directly from the open ocean and used stable-isotope tracing to reveal the exact exchange of substances between host and algae.
This method allows researchers to track the incorporation of supplied labeled compounds into the metabolism of the holobiont, revealing which pathways are active. The labeling experiments were conducted onsite in the Mediterranean Sea, while the detailed chemical analyses were performed later in the laboratory in Jena. "It is fascinating to see how precisely this biological partnership is organized," Pohnert says.
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