Application of Genomic Methods for Understanding the Environmental Impacts in Cnidarian Species

Abstract

The environmental issues including climate changes and environmental pollution induced by anthropogenic chemicals attract public attention recently. The advances in genomic study on biological organisms make it possible to evaluate the biological responses against environmental changes at subcelluar level by genomewide gene expression analysis for prognostic risk assessment, namely genetic toxicology or also called as ‘Environmental genomics’. The usage of cnidarians (corals, sea anemones, jellyfish and hydroids) in environmental study is now increasing after the genome data have been available in some species. Gene expression profiling which predicts the metabolic changes in organisms against environmental factors can be achieved by using next generation sequencing technique-based transcriptome sequencing and following the microarray-based competitive hybridization analysis. Metagenomic techniques have provided new insight into the interactions between cnidarian host and microbiota in the sense of the environmental adaptation. The initial data obtained on the transcriptomic approaches to environmental changes in a hydroid, Hydra magnipapillata and a soft coral, Scleronephthya gracillimum and changes in microbiota of soft coral species in different locality and of disease infected hydra will be discussed.ogical responses against environmental changes at subcelluar level by genomewide gene expression analysis for prognostic risk assessment, namely genetic toxicology or also called as ‘Environmental genomics’. The usage of cnidarians (corals, sea anemones, jellyfish and hydroids) in environmental study is now increasing after the genome data have been available in some species. Gene expression profiling which predicts the metabolic changes in organisms against environmental factors can be achieved by using next generation sequencing technique-based transcriptome sequencing and following the microarray-based competitive hybridization analysis. Metagenomic techniques have provided new insight into the interactions between cnidarian host and microbiota in the sense of the environmental adaptation. The initial data obtained on the transcriptomic approaches to environmental changes in a hydroid, Hydra magnipapillata and a soft coral, Scleronephthya gracillimum and changes in microbiota of soft coral species in different locality and of disease infected hydra will be discussed.