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Review
. 2014 Sep 30;12(10):5089-122.
doi: 10.3390/md12105089.

Microbial communities and bioactive compounds in marine sponges of the family irciniidae-a review

Affiliations
Review

Microbial communities and bioactive compounds in marine sponges of the family irciniidae-a review

Cristiane C P Hardoim et al. Mar Drugs. .

Abstract

Marine sponges harbour complex microbial communities of ecological and biotechnological importance. Here, we propose the application of the widespread sponge family Irciniidae as an appropriate model in microbiology and biochemistry research. Half a gram of one Irciniidae specimen hosts hundreds of bacterial species-the vast majority of which are difficult to cultivate-and dozens of fungal and archaeal species. The structure of these symbiont assemblages is shaped by the sponge host and is highly stable over space and time. Two types of quorum-sensing molecules have been detected in these animals, hinting at microbe-microbe and host-microbe signalling being important processes governing the dynamics of the Irciniidae holobiont. Irciniids are vulnerable to disease outbreaks, and concerns have emerged about their conservation in a changing climate. They are nevertheless amenable to mariculture and laboratory maintenance, being attractive targets for metabolite harvesting and experimental biology endeavours. Several bioactive terpenoids and polyketides have been retrieved from Irciniidae sponges, but the actual producer (host or symbiont) of these compounds has rarely been clarified. To tackle this, and further pertinent questions concerning the functioning, resilience and physiology of these organisms, truly multi-layered approaches integrating cutting-edge microbiology, biochemistry, genetics and zoology research are needed.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Geographical distribution of exemplarily Irciniidae species. The map was drawn using data available at the World Porifera Database; of note is the wide longitudinal occurrence of the genus Psammocinia.
Figure 2
Figure 2
In situ pictures of Ircinia variabilis (a); Ircinia felix (b); Ircinia campana (c); Sarcotragus spinosulus (d) and of a fixed specimen of Psammocinia compacta (e); Photos courtesy: Francisco R. Pires (ad); Panel (e) is reproduced with permission from Guilherme Muricy (Department of Invertebrates, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Schematic overview of a demosponge from the family Irciniidae. Mesohyl (M), ostium (Ot), pinacoderm (Pi), porocyte (Po), choanocyte (C); archeocyte (A); and osculum (Oc); arrows indicate the water flow within the sponge body.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Phylum-level classification of bacteria detected in Irciniidae sponges by cultivation-independent (a) and cultivation-dependent (c) 16S rRNA gene surveys, and their respective metadata (b,d); the analysis covers all sequences available at NCBI until December 2013, with the exception of 454-pyrosequencing sequence reads. The phylum Proteobacteria is represented in (a) and (c) by the classes Alpha, Gamma and Deltaproteobacteria. The total number of sequences analysed in (a) and (c) is given in brackets.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Confocal laser scanning microscopy images of fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH-CLSM) stained bacteria in S. spinosulus; volume rendering images (left in each panel) and their corresponding 3D reconstructions (right in each panel) are shown for hybridizations with the Cy3-labeled universal bacterial probe (red cells) coupled to ALEXA488- or Cy5-labeled group-specific probes targeting the Alpha- and Gammaproteobacteria classes; Gammaproteobacteria cells appear as yellowish cells in the volume rendering images (a) and as green objects in the 3D reconstruction (b). For co-hybridizations including bacterial, alpha and gammaproteobacterial probes, the latter two groups are represented by yellowish and pink cells, respectively (c,d). Sponge background structure, vastly dominated by profuse spongin filaments, is shown overall in blue or cyan.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Integrated molecular approach for the study of symbiont communities in Irciniidae sponges.

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