巴塞罗那科技学院Arnau Sebé-Pedrós团队的一项最新研究开发出了石珊瑚兼性共生的演化。该项研究成果发表在2025年10月15日出版的《自然》上。

在这里，课题组研究了地中海耐热珊瑚巴塔哥尼卡兼性共生的基因组和细胞基础。小组对O. patagonica的染色体尺度基因组进行了测序和注释，并建立了该物种和两个专性共生珊瑚的细胞图谱。比较基因组分析揭示了所有硬核动物的核型和共系保守性，物种特异性基因扩增主要由串联复制驱动。共生和自然非共生野生标本的单细胞转录组学分析发现，吞噬免疫细胞增加，胃真皮基因表达从生长相关功能到静止的上皮样状态的代谢转变。宿主细胞的跨物种比较揭示了Oculina特异性代谢和信号适应，表明机会主义的双重摄食策略将生存与共生状态分离开来。

据悉，大多数石珊瑚是专性共生体，依赖于居住在特殊细胞内的鞭毛藻的光合作用所提供的营养。这种共生联合体的破坏会导致珊瑚白化，并最终导致死亡。然而，一些珊瑚物种表现出兼性共生，使它们能够在长时间的白化中生存。尽管有这种恢复力，潜在的生物学机制仍然知之甚少。

附：英文原文

Title: The evolution of facultative symbiosis in stony corals

Author: Levy, Shani, Grau-Bov, Xavier, Kim, Iana V., Najle, Sebastian R., Ksiopolska, Ewa, Elek, Anamaria, Montes-Espua, Laia, Montgomery, Sean A., Mass, Tali, Seb-Pedrs, Arnau

Issue&Volume: 2025-10-15

Abstract: Most stony corals are obligate symbionts that are dependent on nutrients provided by the photosynthetic activity of dinoflagellates residing within specialized cells1. Disruption of this symbiotic consortium leads to coral bleaching and, ultimately, mortality2. However, a few coral species exhibit facultative symbiosis, allowing them to survive extended periods of bleaching3,4. Despite this resilience, the underlying biological mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here we investigate the genomic and cellular basis of facultative symbiosis in Oculina patagonica, a thermotolerant Mediterranean coral5,6. We sequenced and annotated a chromosome-scale genome of O. patagonica and built cell atlases for this species and two obligate symbiotic corals. Comparative genomic analysis revealed karyotypic and syntenic conservation across all scleractinians, with species-specific gene expansions primarily driven by tandem duplications. Single-cell transcriptomic profiling of symbiotic and naturally aposymbiotic wild specimens identified an increase in phagocytic immune cells and a metabolic shift in gastrodermal gene expression from growth-related functions to quiescent, epithelial-like states. Cross-species comparison of host cells uncovered Oculina-specific metabolic and signalling adaptations indicative of an opportunistic, dual-feeding strategy that decouples survival from symbiotic state.

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09623-6

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09623-6