Nutrient Uptake Ability of Zooxanthellae After Temperature Acclimation

Overview

Zooxanthellae, genus Symbiodinium, is the symbiotic microalgae that occupies coral tissue. Coral bleaching is the process in which the zooxanthellae is expelled from the host because of rising temperatures and ocean acidification, resulting in starvation and death. This study was designed to test the algae’s ability to cycle nutrients after being acclimated to unusually high temperatures. Two 5L cultures of zooxanthellae at 27℃ acted as the control, and three 1L variable cultures were maintained in a water bath at 30, 33, and 36°C, for four weeks each. Before proceeding to the next temperature phase, a 1L aliquot of the control culture was shocked in the water bath for one week. All six cultures were then put through a one-hour test in which nitrate levels were artificially elevated, to determine the cultures’ ability to cycle nitrate. It was determined that the acclimated cultures were able to cycle the nitrate at rates comparable to the controls (p>0.05), whereas the shocked cultures’ ability to do so was depleted with each increase in temperature. Furthermore, the growth rate of the acclimated cultures was nearly double that of the control (p<0.05). This study demonstrates the ability of temperature acclimated zooxanthellae to thrive under stress and cycle nutrients as effectively as the control culture, offering a feasible solution to the coral bleaching crisis.

Competition history

• JSHS 2025 Category not listed

Resources

• National JSHS abstract book ↗

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