Affiliation:
1. Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Brazil; Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Brazil
2. Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Brazil
Abstract
ABSTRACT Histological analysis of bleached samples of Siderastrea stellata Verrill, 1868, with white plague disease and with alteration in the color pattern, revealed drastic tissue and cellular disturbances, such as lysis of the external epithelium, hyperplasia of gastrodermis, apoptosis of epithelial cells and zooxanthellae, and degradation of mesenteric filaments and reproductive cells. Fungal hyphae, diatoms, and cyanobacteria were present in diseased samples and colonies with alteration in the color pattern. Furthermore, bleached and diseased samples showed significant reductions in the number of zooxanthellae per 100 µm2 of gastrodermis and significant reductions in the diameters and volumes of stage V oocytes. We found that bleaching events, diseases, and colonies with alteration in the color pattern promoted degradation of reproductive cells, resulting in the consequent interruption of the reproduction of the coral S. stellata, which is one of the most common Brazilian coral species. The implications of these indirect effects of bleaching, disease, and changes in coral color patterns in the population dynamics of Brazilian reefs are discussed.
Subject
Animal Science and Zoology
Reference34 articles.
1. Disease in zoanthids: dynamics in space and time;Acosta A;Hydrobiologia,2001
2. Distribution and dynamics of coral diseases in the Eastern Red Sea;Antonius A;Proceeding of 6th International Coral Reef Symposium,1988
3. Evidence for multiple stressor interactions and effects on coral reefs;Ban S. S.;Global Change Biology,2014
4. Sexual reproduction of the Brazilian reef coral Siderastrea stellata Verrill, 1868 (Anthozoa, Scleractinia);Barros M. M. L. de;Bulletin of Marine Science,2003
5. The effects of a coral disease on the reproductive output of Montastraea faveolata (Scleractinia: Faviidae);Borger J. L.;Revista de Biologia Tropical,2010
Cited by
1 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献