Transcriptomic Insights Into the Immune Repertoire of an Antarctic Sponge

Area of Science:

• Marine Biology
• Immunology
• Genomics

Background:

• Antarctic marine sponges are vital to benthic ecosystems.
• Their symbiotic relationships with microorganisms are crucial.
• Understanding sponge immune responses to microbes is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• Investigate the immune system's transcriptional repertoire in *Myxilla* (*Burtonanchora*) *lissostyla*.
• Provide a functional annotation of the sponge's transcriptome.
• Establish baseline data for future climate change impact assessments.

Main Methods:

• Generated a de novo transcriptome for *M. lissostyla*.
• Performed functional annotation of the transcriptome.
• Analyzed gene expression across samples collected over three years (2019-2021).

Main Results:

• Identified an extensive transcriptional repertoire with consistent constitutive transcript expression.
• Found high expression of immune response and homeostasis pathways.
• Revealed a diverse array of immune receptors, particularly membrane-bound pattern recognition receptors (PRRs).

Conclusions:

• The Antarctic sponge *M. lissostyla* exhibits a broad immune receptor repertoire for microbial interactions.
• Immune and homeostasis pathways are highly expressed, indicating a strong host defense.
• This study provides foundational data for monitoring climate change effects on Antarctic sponge immunity.