C3 Seminar: Jennifer Matthews
Integrating multi-level ‘omics’ to unlock the underlying processes of symbiont compatibility in the cnidarian-Symbiodinium symbiosis.
Currently, major gaps exist in our understanding of the nutritional flux between reef-building cnidarians and their phototrophic algal symbionts (Symbiodinium sp.), but greater in-depth knowledge is of paramount importance for understanding the potential for coral reefs to adapt to environmental change. During my Ph.D., I developed and applied several important methodological advances, including the integration of gene expression and metabolite-profiling techniques, to unravel the molecular and metabolic implications for cnidarians when they harbour different Symbiodinium types. The picture that emerges is one that includes dramatic alteration of metabolism- and immunity- related pathways depending on the symbiotic state. Most importantly, heterologous (i.e. not originally found in the host) Symbiodinium types affect the abundance and diversity of metabolites translocated to the host, and the persistence of novel symbioses is likely to require modification to and/or compensation for the metabolic exchange between the partners. Furthermore, modulation of the oxidative environment is likely to play a critical role in the horizontal establishment and maintenance of novel cnidarian-Symbiodinium associations. Overall, this work raises the intriguing possibility that such novel pairings, should they persist, may evolve over time to a more beneficial symbiotic state, providing an adaptive potential for coral reefs in the face of climate change.
About the speaker
Dr Jennifer Matthews – Ministry for Primary Industries (Wellington, NZ)
Jennifer is a marine biologist with research interests in the molecular and metabolic processes underlying symbiotic interactions in the marine environment. Originally from the UK, she completed a BSc in Biology at Bath University and a Masters of Research in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation at Imperial College London. Prior to completing a PhD at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, studying the nutritional implications of partner switching in the cnidarian-dinoflagellate symbiosis, she founded and managed the marine conservation NPO Big Blue Conservation in Koh Tao, Thailand.
Over the past 10 years, she has contributed to a variety of research projects from coral bleaching recovery and Marine Protection Area development in Thailand, to functional genomics of yeast at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge. Currently, she is a scientist with the Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity team at the Ministry for Primary Industries in Wellington, New Zealand. She is the Marine advisor for BSAC Thailand, and has been awarded grants from the Company of Biologists, PADI Project A.W.A.R.E., and a PhD scholarship by the Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fund.
Light refreshments provided after talk - All are welcome!
