Abstract Summary
Coral reefs are in rapid decline around the world, particularly in the two Caribbean species Acropora palmata and Orbicella faveolata. These species are stony corals that have been unable to reproduce and grow fast enough to keep up with the recent bleaching events and outbreaks of disease. Coral microfragments have been observed to grow at a much faster rate, but little is known about the biochemical process behind this rapid growth. The Hippo growth pathway, which is a biochemical process that has been identified in Drosophila and humans, is involved in tissue growth and regeneration. We are examining this pathway to determine if it is involved in the rapid growth found in coral microfragments. First we used timelapse photography to determine which tissue undergoes rapid growth. RNA is extracted from the identified tissues and RT-qPCR is used to investigate if the Hippo growth pathway is expressed during tissue regeneration after microfragmentation. Further research should focus on if the pathway operates in other coral species and whether the pathway can be manipulated to cause increased growth rates. This project is imperative to determining if coral can be induced for faster growth rates so that outplanting can occur quicker to aid reef restoration efforts.
