Alina Szmant | University of North Carolina Wilmington (original) (raw)

Papers by Alina Szmant

Molecular Ecology Notes

We report the isolation of seven single-copy nuclear DNA loci from the Caribbean reefbuilding cor... more We report the isolation of seven single-copy nuclear DNA loci from the Caribbean reefbuilding coral, Montastraea annularis. All loci are polymorphic at the nucleotide level, and three loci have readily screened restriction enzyme site polymorphisms that can help to rapidly assess population genetic structure. Use of these markers can provide baseline genetic information concerning the population dynamics of dominant stony corals and fuel the implementation and management of appropriate conservation strategies.

Limnology and Oceanography, 1999

Coral Reefs, Mar 3, 2009

Abstract The effect of elevated seawater temperatures, such as those plaguing tropical seas durin... more Abstract The effect of elevated seawater temperatures, such as those plaguing tropical seas during the summers of anomalously warm years, on early life stages of reef corals remains poorly studied. To redress this situation, survivorship of larvae of the brooding coral, Favia ...

Molecular Ecology Notes, 2004

We report the isolation and characterization of seven microsatellite loci from the Caribbean reef... more We report the isolation and characterization of seven microsatellite loci from the Caribbean reef-building coral, Montastraea annularis. All loci are polymorphic with allele numbers ranging from five to 31 and observed heterozygosities from 0.17 to 0.89. These loci can be used in assessing gene flow patterns and diversity of this stony coral species both for local coral reef management purposes as well as for elucidating population connectivity within the greater Caribbean basin. These markers should also be applicable to other species of Montastraea and for resolving taxonomic relationships within the M. annularis species complex.

Coral Reef Restoration Handbook, 2006

2012 Oceans, 2012

ABSTRACT This paper describes a self-contained diver-portable instrument designed to non-destruct... more ABSTRACT This paper describes a self-contained diver-portable instrument designed to non-destructively measure coral respiration and photosynthesis in situ. In situ instruments are needed to promote rapid assessment and monitoring of metabolic health of corals and other benthic organisms affected by ocean acidification, global warming, and other stressors, both anthropogenic and natural. Non-destructive tools are especially needed for reef corals because their live cover is greatly reduced and destructive sampling in many locations is prohibited. University of North Carolina Wilmington and Physical Sciences Inc., under the auspices of the NOAA-funded Cooperative Institute for Ocean Exploration, Research and Technology, have designed, fabricated and field tested such an instrument. CISME (Coral in Situ Metabolism and Energetics) is a compact instrument that measures dissolved oxygen, pH and temperature, which can then be used to determine respiration and photosynthesis rates of corals and a variety of other marine organisms. CISME has a sample port for introducing reagents (e.g. CO2 enriched seawater) or withdrawing water samples for analyses that require laboratory instrumentation (e.g. total alkalinity for calcification rates). The instrument has a broad spectrum light array capable of mimicking natural light intensities during photosynthetic measurements. Laboratory and field tests demonstrate that the instrument produces quick, consistent metabolic measurements, as well as photosynthesis vs. irradiance response curves. These features make CISME suitable for experiments with pollutants and for ocean acidification research. The new technology will provide a new field tool for assessing coral reef ecosystem health.

Limnology and Oceanography: Methods, 2014

ABSTRACT We present a modified segmented flow analysis method for the simultaneous determination ... more ABSTRACT We present a modified segmented flow analysis method for the simultaneous determination of total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) and total dissolved phosphorus (TDP) in marine environments based on a combination of photooxidation and alkaline persulfate digestion. The modified Bran+Luebbe® Continuous Flow Autoanalyzer III (CFA III) manifold consists of a high-energy UV lamp (1.1 W at 185 nm) and a heated bath (90°C). The analytical precision of the method is within 2.1% for TDN and 1.6% for TDP analyses, and within 4.5% for dissolved organic N and P (DON and DOP); the average standard deviation is ± 0.37 μM for DON and ± 0.02 μM for DOP. The detection limit is 1.23 μM for DON and 0.05 μM for DOP analyses. The linear analytical range of the method is up to 200 μM for TDN and up to 6 μM for TDP. The CFA III method was compared with the autoclave alkaline persulfate oxidation (PO) and the high temperature combustion (HTC-TDN) techniques.All methods, when applied to open ocean and coastal samples, produced similar DON concentrations (PO:CFA III = 102% and HTC:CFA III = 100%, on average), but the CFA III method yielded significantly higher oxidation efficiencies for DOP analyses than the PO technique (PO:CFA III = 71%, on average). For CFA IIITDN/TDP analyses samples with different salinities should be analyzed relative to standard solutions prepared with similar matrix. A throughput of 20 samples per hour is easily achieved. This method is simple, fast, reproducible, economical, and is highly suitable for simultaneous TDN and TDP routine analyses.

Coral Reefs of the USA, 2008

... Interestingly, the Tortugas Banks reefs did not keep pace with rising sea levels while ... Ab... more ... Interestingly, the Tortugas Banks reefs did not keep pace with rising sea levels while ... Abstract 2006; FWC licenses sales data, personal communication) issued in Martin, Palm Beach ... Andrew Carnegie was a wealthy industrialist and wanted to accelerate the United States into ...

The Biological bulletin, 2009

Elevated seawater temperatures during the late summer have the potential to negatively affect the... more Elevated seawater temperatures during the late summer have the potential to negatively affect the development and survivorship of the larvae of reef corals that are reproductive during that time of year. Acropora palmata, a major Caribbean hermatype, reproduces annually during August and September. A. palmata populations have severely declined over the past three decades, and recovery will require high recruitment rates. Such recruitment will be limited if larval supply is reduced by elevated temperatures. The effects of elevated temperatures on development, survival, and larval settlement of A. palmata were investigated by culturing newly fertilized eggs at temperatures ranging from 27.5 to 31.5 degrees C. Development was accelerated and the percentage of developmental abnormalities increased at higher temperatures. Embryo mortality peaked during gastrulation, indicating that this complex developmental process is particularly sensitive to elevated temperatures. Larvae cultured at 3...

The Biochemical journal, Jan 15, 1997

Animals rely on their diet for amino acids that they are incapable either of synthesizing or of s... more Animals rely on their diet for amino acids that they are incapable either of synthesizing or of synthesizing in sufficient quantities to meet metabolic needs. These are the so-called 'essential amino acids'. This set of amino acids is similar among the vertebrates and many of the invertebrates. Previously, no information was available for amino acid synthesis by the most primitive invertebrates, the Cnidaria. The purpose of this study was to examine amino acid synthesis by representative cnidarians within the Order Scleractinia. Three species of zooxanthellate reef coral, Montastraea faveolata, Acropora cervicornis and Porites divaricata, and two species of non-zooxanthellate coral, Tubastrea coccinea and Astrangia poculata, were incubated with 14C-labelled glucose or with the 14C-labelled amino acids glutamic acid, lysine or valine. Radiolabel tracer was followed into protein amino acids. A total of 17 amino acids, including hydroxyproline, were distinguishable by the techn...

ABSTRACT The role of crustose coralline algae (CCA) and bacterial biofilms in the settlement indu... more ABSTRACT The role of crustose coralline algae (CCA) and bacterial biofilms in the settlement induction of Acropora palmata larvae was tested with ceramic tiles conditioned in reef waters for different time periods. Larval settlement varied among tiles by conditioning time (P&lt;0.001), with low settlement (11%) on unconditioned tiles and high settlement (72-87%) on tiles conditioned for 2, 8 and 9 weeks. Tile surface texture and orientation also affected settlement (P&lt;0.001). Larvae of A. palmata preferred the undersides of tiles as conditioned in the field (78% of total settlement), compared to upper surfaces (8%) or Petri dish surfaces (14%). CCA cover increased with conditioning time (P&lt;0.001) and differed by tile orientation (P&lt;0.005), revealing a positive correlation between settlement and CCA cover on tile bottoms, but not tile tops. Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis of 16S rRNA genes revealed that biofilm age, tile surface and tile orientation affected microbial community structure. Further, biofilms that induced settlement were characterized by bacterial populations distinct from non-inductive biofilm communities. Thus, we present additional evidence of the involvement of CCA and bacterial biofilm communities in the process of coral larval settlement, suggesting that complex interactions among multiple cues are involved in larval settlement choices.

Lecture Notes on Coastal and Estuarine Studies, 1988

Marine Biology, 2003

Despite their potential importance in structuring reef communities, invertebrate corallivores and... more Despite their potential importance in structuring reef communities, invertebrate corallivores and their population structures are poorly understood. We found distinct differences in the population structures (length-frequency distribution and sex ratio) of the corallivorous gastropod Coralliophila abbreviata residing on two coral-host taxa, Montastraea spp. and Acropora palmata, in the Florida Keys. In each of two survey years, around 50% of the Montastraea spp. colonies were infested, with a mean snail density of eight snails per infested colony (range 1-45), while around 20% of A. palmata colonies harbored three snails per infested colony (range 1-23). Variation in patterns of snail occurrence was also observed within a host taxon. A. palmata occurred in low-and highdensity stands (0.4 and 1 colony m-2 , respectively, at the initial survey) at different sites. Hurricane Georges struck the area in September 1998. When resurveyed in 1999, density of colonies in low-density stands had decreased by 75% to 0.1 colonies m-2. This decrease was accompanied by a doubling in the proportion of colonies infested with snails (from 19% to 46%) and an increase in snail density per infested colony (from 3.7±3.3 SD to 5.4±4.6 SD) as snails apparently concentrated on surviving A. palmata. In contrast, sites with high density A. palmata stands (thickets) retained colony densities of about $1 colony m-2 among years, while snail infestation increased only from 9% to 14% of colonies surveyed and snail density essentially remained unchanged (from 2.7±1.8 to 2.9±1.9 snails per infested colony). Snails collected from Montastraea spp. were shorter than those from A. palmata in lowdensity stands and were longest on A. palmata in thickets. On both host taxa, female snails were longer than males. The sex ratio of snails on Montastraea spp. hosts was even (1:1), while that of snails on A. palmata was skewed (70% males). Factors that could explain observed differences in size structure and sex ratio between Coralliophila populations on the two coral host taxa include: differential susceptibility to predators, influence of host tissue nutritional quality and/or secondary metabolite content, and genetic differences (cryptic species). The host-specific characteristics of C. abbreviata populations imply that the impact of gastropods on reef communities will vary with the coral species composition.

Marine Genomics, 2009

Similar to many marine invertebrates, scleractinian corals experience a dramatic morphological tr... more Similar to many marine invertebrates, scleractinian corals experience a dramatic morphological transformation, as well as a habitat switch, upon settlement and metamorphosis. At this time, planula larvae transform from non-calcifying, demersal, motile organisms into sessile, calcifying, benthic juvenile polyps. We performed gene expression microarray analyses between planulae, aposymbiotic primary polyps, and symbiotic adult tissue to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying coral metamorphosis and early stages of calcification in the Robust/Short clade scleractinian coral Montastraea faveolata. Among the annotated genes, the most abundant upregulated transcripts in the planula stage are involved in protein synthesis, chromatin assembly and mitochondrial metabolism; the polyp stage, morphogenesis, protein catabolism and organic matrix synthesis; and the adult stage, sexual reproduction, stress response and symbiosis. We also present evidence showing that the planula and adult transcriptomes are more similar to each other than to the polyp transcriptome. Our results also point to a large number of uncharacterized adult coral-specific genes likely involved in coral-specific functions such as symbiosis and calcification.

Toxicon, 1988

Brevetoxin binding: molecular pharmacology versus immunoassay. Toxicon 26, 97-103, 1988.-Brevetox... more Brevetoxin binding: molecular pharmacology versus immunoassay. Toxicon 26, 97-103, 1988.-Brevetoxin PbTx-3 isolated from Florida's red tide dinoflagellate Ptychodiscus brevis has been produced recently in tritiated form by reductive tritiation of brevetoxin PbTx-2. Tritiated PbTx-3 has been used as a specific probe in competitive radioimmunoassays developed to detect brevetoxins in food sources, and this probe has also been utilized to characterize the brevetoxin binding component in rat brain synaptosomes. Brevetoxins PbTx-2 and PbTx-3, possessing the same structural backbone (type-l) as the tritiated probe, and PbTx-l and PbTx-7, possessing a second structural backbone (type-2), have been compared quantitatively in their individual abilities to competitively displace tritiated PbTx-3 from its specific binding site in each assay. Type-l toxins displaced labeled probe with EDso values of 20-22 nM and 12-17 nM in radioimmunoassay and synaptosomes, respectively. Type-2 toxins displaced labeled probe with EDso values of 92-93 nM and 3.5-4.1 nM in RIA and synaptosomes, respectively. Synaptosome assays reflect potency of each toxin examined, while radioimmunoassay reflects structural similarities to the immunizing toxin PbTx-3.

PLoS ONE, 2011

Natural light cycles synchronize behavioral and physiological cycles over varying time periods in... more Natural light cycles synchronize behavioral and physiological cycles over varying time periods in both plants and animals. Many scleractinian corals exhibit diel cycles of polyp expansion and contraction entrained by diel sunlight patterns, and monthly cycles of spawning or planulation that correspond to lunar moonlight cycles. The molecular mechanisms for regulating such cycles are poorly understood. In this study, we identified four molecular clock genes (cry1, cry2, clock and cycle) in the scleractinian coral, Favia fragum, and investigated patterns of gene expression hypothesized to be involved in the corals' diel polyp behavior and lunar reproductive cycles. Using quantitative PCR, we measured fluctuations in expression of these clock genes over both diel and monthly spawning timeframes. Additionally, we assayed gene expression and polyp expansion-contraction behavior in experimental corals in normal light:dark (control) or constant dark treatments. Well-defined and reproducible diel patterns in cry1, cry2, and clock expression were observed in both fieldcollected and the experimental colonies maintained under control light:dark conditions, but no pattern was observed for cycle. Colonies in the control light:dark treatment also displayed diel rhythms of tentacle expansion and contraction. Experimental colonies in the constant dark treatment lost diel patterns in cry1, cry2, and clock expression and displayed a diminished and less synchronous pattern of tentacle expansion and contraction. We observed no pattern in cry1, cry2, clock, or cycle expression correlated with monthly spawning events suggesting these genes are not involved in the entrainment of reproductive cycles to lunar light cycles in F. fragum. Our results suggest a molecular clock mechanism, potentially similar to that in described in fruit flies, exists within F. fragum.

Molecular Ecology, 2008

The declining health of coral reefs worldwide is likely to intensify in response to continued ant... more The declining health of coral reefs worldwide is likely to intensify in response to continued anthropogenic disturbance from coastal development, pollution, and climate change. In response to these stresses, reef-building corals may exhibit bleaching, which marks the breakdown in symbiosis between coral and zooxanthellae. Mass coral bleaching due to elevated water temperature can devastate coral reefs on a large geographical scale. In order to understand the molecular and cellular basis of bleaching in corals, we have measured gene expression changes associated with thermal stress and bleaching using a complementary DNA microarray containing 1310 genes of the Caribbean coral Montastraea faveolata. In a first experiment, we identified differentially expressed genes by comparing experimentally bleached M. faveolata fragments to control non-heat-stressed fragments. In a second experiment, we identified differentially expressed genes during a time course experiment with four time points across 9 days. Results suggest that thermal stress and bleaching in M. faveolata affect the following processes: oxidative stress, Ca 2+ homeostasis, cytoskeletal organization, cell death, calcification, metabolism, protein synthesis, heat shock protein activity, and transposon activity. These results represent the first medium-scale transcriptomic study focused on revealing the cellular foundation of thermal stress-induced coral bleaching. We postulate that oxidative stress in thermal-stressed corals causes a disruption of Ca 2+ homeostasis, which in turn leads to cytoskeletal and cell adhesion changes, decreased calcification, and the initiation of cell death via apoptosis and necrosis.