The autotrophic nutrition of symbiotic marine coelenterates with special reference to hermatypic corals. I. Movement of photosynthetic products between the symbionts

Abstract

Abstract When symbiotic coelenterates, especially hermatypic corals, were incubated in the light in sea water containing NaH14CO3, small quantities of fixed 14C were released from the tissues at a steady rate over 4 h. The rate of release was greatly increased in the presence of glycerol, glucose and alanine; the additional 14C released was in the same substance as that added to the medium. The following related compounds had little or no effect on 14C release : ethylene glycol, sorbose, fructose, glucosamine, glycine, proline, serine and glutamic acid. Such results have been previously reported in other symbiotic systems, and the substances causing the specific release of fixed 14C are believed to be those which move from the autotrophic to the heterotrophic symbiont. This belief is supported here by previous observations that glycerol, glucose and alanine are among the most important organic substances released by freshly isolated zooxanthellae. Ammonium chloride increased the amount of fixed 14C released by corals into alanine media, possibly due to conversion of ammonia to amino acids by zooxanthellae. Appreciable release of 14C fixed in the dark also occurred into alanine solutions. These results suggest possible roles of zooxanthellae in supplying organic nitrogen compounds to the host cell at night as well as during the day. The involvement of zooxanthellae in ‘recycling’ nitrogen compounds within the association may help to explain the success of corals in seas poor in nutrients. There was substantial utilization of external glycerol and glucose when supplied at either high or low concentrations. Corals may well be able to utilize some of the small amounts of organic matter dissolved in sea water in the natural environment.