van Oppen Madeleine J H, Gates Ruth D
Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, Qld 4810, Australia.
Mol Ecol. 2006 Nov;15(13):3863-83. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-294X.2006.03026.x.
Coral reefs have suffered long-term decline due to a range of anthropogenic disturbances and are now also under threat from climate change. For appropriate management of these vulnerable and valuable ecosystems it is important to understand the factors and processes that determine their resilience and that of the organisms inhabiting them, as well as those that have led to existing patterns of coral reef biodiversity. The scleractinian (stony) corals deposit the structural framework that supports and promotes the maintenance of biological diversity and complexity of coral reefs, and as such, are major components of these ecosystems. The success of reef-building corals is related to their obligate symbiotic association with dinoflagellates of the genus Symbiodinium. These one-celled algal symbionts (zooxanthellae) live in the endodermal tissues of their coral host, provide most of the host's energy budget and promote rapid calcification. Furthermore, zooxanthellae are the main primary producers on coral reefs due to the oligotrophic nature of the surrounding waters. In this review paper, we summarize and critically evaluate studies that have employed genetics and/or molecular biology in examining questions relating to the evolution and ecology of reef-building corals and their algal endosymbionts, and that bear relevance to coral reef conservation. We discuss how these studies can focus future efforts, and examine how these approaches enhance our understanding of the resilience of reef-building corals.
由于一系列人为干扰，珊瑚礁长期衰退，如今还面临气候变化的威胁。对于这些脆弱而珍贵的生态系统进行适当管理，了解决定其恢复力以及栖息其中的生物的恢复力的因素和过程，以及那些导致现有珊瑚礁生物多样性模式的因素和过程，是很重要的。石珊瑚构建了支撑和促进珊瑚礁生物多样性及复杂性维持的结构框架，因此是这些生态系统的主要组成部分。造礁珊瑚的成功与其与共生藻属的甲藻形成的专性共生关系有关。这些单细胞藻类共生体（虫黄藻）生活在其珊瑚宿主的内胚层组织中，为宿主提供大部分能量预算，并促进快速钙化。此外，由于周围水域营养匮乏，虫黄藻是珊瑚礁上主要的初级生产者。在这篇综述论文中，我们总结并批判性地评估了利用遗传学和/或分子生物学来研究与造礁珊瑚及其藻类内共生体的进化和生态学相关问题，且与珊瑚礁保护相关的研究。我们讨论这些研究如何能聚焦未来的工作，并探讨这些方法如何增进我们对造礁珊瑚恢复力的理解。
