Marine Sponges

We describe two new species of Clathria (Microciona) Bowerbank, 1862: C. (M.) crassitoxa sp. nov. and C. (M.) trairae
sp. nov. from Paraíba State (Northeastern Brazil). All are sciophilous species and are represented by small fragments re-moved from the substrate. Both new species have cleistochelae, and are compared with their cleistocheliferous congeners, differing from all of them by the possession of different combinations of other megascleres and microscleres.

The scleractinian corals Tubastraea coccinea Lesson, 1829 and Tubastraea tagusensis Wells, 1882 are the first alien corals to be introduced into the South Atlantic and threaten native marine organisms due to their noxious attributes. This study aimed to determine the spatial distribution and relative abundance of these species throughout the Tamoios Ecological Station Marine Protected Area (MPA). Monitoring was carried out at 33 sites by two snorkel divers swimming parallel to the shore and observing the substrate, diagnosing and visually estimating the relative abundance of both species on a scale: dominant, abundant, frequent, occasional, rare or absent. The study presents new records which demonstrate that the MPA is being invaded by both species and that T. tagusensis is leading the invasion from west to east. Most sites are near the original probable point of introduction into the region.

Provinsi Sulawesi Tenggara adalah salah satu daerah yang mempunyai potensi sumber daya perairan yang sangat besar. Hal tersebut dapat dilihat dari wilayahnya yang terdiri atas perairan laut. Salah satu komoditas yang berkembang pesat di perairan laut yaitu ikan hias air laut.

Prodigiosin produced by Serratia marcescens is a promising drug owing to its reported characteristics of having antibacterial, antimalarial, antimycotic, immunomodulating and antitumor activities. Investigations were made in the present study to screen new strain of Serratia marcescens MBB05; the natural red pigment prodigiosin producing strain was isolated from Western Ghat Ecosystem, Tamil Nadu, India. The regular liquid media currently being used for prodigiosin biosynthesis are nutrient broth, peptone glycerol broth and production medium. For this, eleven natural substrates have been tested. Among these substrates, peanut powder was found to be the best natural substrate at a concentration of 2.0% in distilled water at pH-7; inoculum (5%); temperature (30°C); incubation period of 36 hours. The production was 4.5 times higher (560.4 mg/mL) than the optimized basal medium. A natural media which supports the growth of the bacteria and at the same time prove efficient to activate high levels of pigment production was the aim of this work.

Paleontological inferences, molecular clocks, and biomarker fossils indicate sponges evolved in the Cryogenian, but Precambrian sponge fossils are rare, poorly substantiated, and controversial. Spicule-like microstructures (SLMs) hosted in phosphatized fossils from the Ediacaran Doushantuo Formation (∼635–551 Ma) at Weng’an of South China have been interpreted as cylindrical siliceous monaxons, and their hosting fossils as the oldest demosponges in the fossil record. In order to assess their veracity as the oldest spiculate demosponges, we utilize a suite of in situ nanoscale analytical techniques—including scanning electron microscopy, synchrotron X-ray fluorescence mapping, X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy, focused ion beam electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy—to evaluate the ultrastructures and elemental, chemical, and mineralogical compositions of the SLMs. Our data decisively shows that the SLMs are carbonaceous in composition and rectangular in transverse sections, and therefore, are not cylindrical siliceous spicules. Instead, the SLMs may be microbial strands, axial filaments of early hexactinellids, or acicular crystals molded by organic matter. Regardless, our new data invalidate the oldest and only Precambrian demosponges with mineralized spicules. These results indicate that interpretations of Precambrian sponge fossils should be scrutinized with compositional, mineralogical, and ultrastructural data collected using in situ analytical techniques. In addition, our conclusions affirm that no unequivocal biomineralizing sponges occur below the Ediacaran-Cambrian boundary. If hexactinellids and demosponges did diverge in the Cryogenian as suggested by molecular clocks and biomarkers, they either evolved biomineralization long after their divergence or their biomineralized spicules were never preserved until after the Ediacaran-Cambrian boundary. In either case, the dearth of biomineralizing sponge fossils in the Precambrian and their abundance in the early Cambrian must reflect a geobiologically-significant aspect of the Precambrian-Phanerozoic transition.

Thirty-three (33) species of marine sponge were identified in this study. Four were identified as possiblynew to science; a short description of these species is given here. In addition, one species has potential for bath sponge culture. Percent similarity of species is low between stations suggesting a highly diverse sponge assemblage around the island. Clustering of the stations appears to be related to distance between stations.

Sponges are a prominent component of the invertebrate fauna of Caribbean reefs. This study describes various aspects of the ecology of the demosponge Desmapsamma anchorata, Carter 1882, off southwest Puerto Rico. The distribution of Desmapsamma was examined at various sites (San Cristobal reef, Pelotas reef and Guayanilla Bay) and more detailed studies (field experiments, spatial dispersion pattern, population dynamics and interactions with other organisms) were largely conducted at Media Luna reef. This sponge occurs in depths ranging from 2 to more than 20m in inner, middle and outer reefs systems as well as in other habitats (mangrove roots, Thalassia beds, etc.). The spatial dispersion pattern of Desmapsamma is aggregated, probably because of the patchy distribution of suitable substrates. In addition to its presence on inanimate substrates, Desmapsamma is often associated with other organisms (gorgonians, other sponges, corals, zoanthids). The biological associations involve positive (mutualistic), negative (competitive), and no effect (standoff) interactions depending upon the specific organism. In addition, competitive interactions included both overgrowth and allelopathic effects depending upon the associated species. For instance Desmapsamma overgrew scleractinians and killed tissues of the gorgonian Gorgonia ventalina through allelopathy. Mortality of Desmapsamma was size-dependent, with the highest survival for medium size colonies. The greater drag forces associated with wave action are probably responsible for the high mortality of large colonies. Recruitment was largely the result of sexual reproduction rather than asexual fragmentation. A size-specific matrix model indicated that the Desmapsamma population was decreasing during the study period.
The results of this study indicate that Desmapsamma populations are affected by a complex interplay of physical effects and biological interactions.

Dercitus (Stoeba) pseudodiscorhabda sp. nov. is described from the tropical western Atlantic. It is the only Dercitus (Stoeba)
with four-rayed calthrops and discorhabds-like sanidasters. This is the 16th species of the genus to be recognized worldwide,
the sixth from the Atlantic. The new species is compared with all its congeners worldwide.

In this study, we pursue unravelling the bacterial communities of 26 sponges, belonging to several taxonomical orders, and comprising low microbial abundance (LMA) and high microbial abundance (HMA) representatives. Particularly, we searched for species-specific bacteria, which could be considered as symbionts. To reduce temporal and spatial environmentally caused differences between host species, we sampled all the sponge species present in an isolated small rocky area in a single dive. The bacterial communities identified by pyrosequencing the 16S rRNA gene showed that all HMA species clustered separated from LMA sponges and seawater. HMA sponges often had highest diversity, but some LMA sponges had also very diverse bacterial communities. Network analyses indicated that no core bacterial community seemed to exist for the studied sponges, not even for such a space and timerestricted sampling. Most sequences, particularly the most abundant ones in each species, were speciesspecific for both HMA and LMA sponges. The bacterial sequences retrieved from LMA sponges, despite being phylogenetically more similar to seawater, did not represent transient seawater bacteria. We conclude that sponge bacterial communities depend more on the host affiliation to the HMA or LMA groups than on host phylogeny.

Open-sea mariculture of the Philippine blue sponge Xestospongia sp. was established as a route for the production of the biomedically-important renieramycins. We assessed the effects of harvesting regime, culture period or periodicity, sponge translocation and farming methods to sponge survival, sponge growth, chemistry and bioactivity of sponge extracts. During the 12-month culture, sponge growth, renieramycin M content and an-tiproliferative activity of sponge extracts showed significant differences, depending on the culture period and location. Growth and renieramycin biosynthesis were minimally affected by temperature and may be driven by thermal-independent processes in the coral reef. Multiple harvesting of Xestospongia sp. was also favorable to growth and consequently, provided higher biomass and renieramycin M yields.

Investigation carried out to study the nematicidal activity of marine sponge callyspongia
diffusa associated Pseudomonas fluorescens BCPBMS-1. P. fluorescens
strain was tested for nematicidal activity against Meloidogyne javanica which
cause root-knot disease in green gram plant. The numbers of dead juveniles were
counted up to 48 hrs at 12 h interval. Pot experiment was also done to check its
ability in field. At the end of 48 hrs 90% of juveniles of M. javanica tested were
found killed. About 3 kg of sterile sandy loam soil was filled in 6 pots and all of
them were infected with 20 ml of M. javanica containing 1000 larvae (i.e.,) 50
larvae/mL. In infected plant chlorophyll-a content was 0.01mg/g on 5th day, on
10th and 15th day it was totally absent .In treated plants, chlorophyll-a content was
0.49 mg/g on 5th day, 1.3 mg/g on 10th day and 1.42 mg/g at 15th day. Chlorophyll-b
was totally absent in infected plant at 5th, 10th and 15th days. In treated plants chlorophyll-b
content on 5th day was 0.48 mg/g, it was 0.6 mg/g on 10th day and 0.75
mg/g on 15th day. In control plants on 5th day it was 0.9 mg/g, 0.92 mg/g on 10th day
and 1.0mg/g on 15th day. Total protein content of the infected plant was 0.1mg/g
on 5th day, it was below detectable level on 10th and 15th days. In treated plants,
total protein content was 2.3mg/g on 5th day, 4.3mg/g on 10th day and 15th day
it was 7.2 mg/g. The obtained results of this study confirmed that Pseudomonas
fluorescens BCPBMS-1 is a promising nematicidal agent and great potential in
Meloidogyne javanica management in green gram plant.

The late Eocene ‘soft’ sponge fauna of southern Australia is
reconstructed based on disassociated spicules and is used to interpret the paleoecology and environmental context of shallow marine communities in this region. The reconstructed sponge association was compared with coeval sponge assemblages from the Oamaru Diatomite, New Zealand, and with the modern ‘soft’ sponge fauna of southern coastal of Australia. Based on the predominance of shallow- and moderately shallow-water species, the late Eocene assemblage is interpreted to have inhabited waters depths of about 100 m. This contrast with the spicule assemblage from New Zealand, which characterized deeper waters based on the presence of numerous strictly deepwater sponge taxa, and the absence of spicules of shallow-water demosponges represented in the Australian material. The southern Australian Eocene sponge assemblages have clear Tethyan affinities evidenced by the occurrence of sponges known today from diverse regions. This distribution suggests much wider geographical ranges of some sponge taxa during the Eocene. Their present distributions may be relictual. The modern sponge fauna inhabiting southern Australian waters shows only moderate differences from these of the late Eocene. Differences are more pronounced at lower taxonomic levels (family and genus).

This research presents three new species of carnivorous sponges from the family Cladorhizidae from the Great Australian Bight, South Australia. This research also shows a clear separation within the species currently known as Cladorhiza into those with an arbuscular or tree-like morphology from the Atlantic, to those of differing morphologies and propose three new genera, i.e. Bathytentacular gen. nov., Abyssosdiskos gen. nov. and Nullarbora gen. nov. and the resurrection of an old genus Axoniderma. nov. The three new species described in this paper are Nullarbora heptaxia sp. nov., Abyssocladia oxyasters sp. nov. and Lycopodina hystrix sp. nov. A new species in the family Guitarridae, Guitarra davidconryi sp. nov., a family closely related to the carnivorous sponges is also described in this paper. These new species are the first recorded carnivorous species from South Australia and increase the number of species recorded from around Australia to 25.

The method of spicular analysis that examines surficial sediments has been used to study the sponge spicule assemblage in the lagoon reef of Bocas del Toro, Panama. The method allowed to recognize some highly diagnostic spicule morphotypes that may belong to four sponge species as yet unnoticed in this area. The presence of these sponges must have been overlooked while studying faunistic compositions within an ecosystem due to their cryptic and/or excavating nature. Despite some limitations, the method of spicular analysis may be used as a supplementary tool for the studies of modern shallow-water sponge communities.

Green turtles (Chelonia mydas (Linnaeus, 1758)) are primarily
herbivorous as adults, consuming minimal amounts of sponge tissue
in the Hawaiian Islands (<1 % gut content) with occasional higher consumption rates in areas where sponges are more abundant. Here we report repetitive field observations of C. mydas feeding on sponges in Maunalua Bay (adjacent to Honolulu, Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi) as originally reported by Oʻahu Diving on October 10, 2009

La cobertura bentónica es un atributo importante para gestionar  eficientemente los arrecifes coralinos,
sin embargo, muchos ecosistemas marinos de Veracruz aún carecen de esta información y el arrecife
Enmedio es un claro ejemplo; por esta razón, se estimó la diversidad y cobertura bentónica en el
arrecife frontal, arrecife posterior y laguna arrecifal, utilizando cuadrantes de 1 m2, los cuales fueron
colocados a cada 5 m sobre tres transectos de 50 m de largo. Con los datos recabados se estimaron
la riqueza específia, equitatividad, dominancia de Simpson, diversidad de Shannon y diversidad
verdadera, asimismo, se determinaron diferencias signifiativas mediante análisis de similitud y
ordenación. La cobertura biótica promedio estimada para el arrecife fue de 37.3%, principalmente
se destacan los corales dado que aportaron la mayor cobertura con 19.8% (±18.8). Las especies más
importantes en cobertura fueron: Orbicella annularis, Erytropodium caribaeorum, Colpophyllia
natans y Pseudodiploria clivosa. Los ambientes arrecifales son signifiativamente diferentes en
composición y cobertura biótica con base en las pruebas de similitud y ordenamiento, ya que el
arrecife posterior registró un mayor número de especies y de cobertura, básicamente por corales
masivos; en cambio en la planicie arrecifal se determinaron varias zonaciones bentónicas que tienden
a ser equitativas y con mayor número de especies efectivas, mientras en el arrecife frontal decrecen
la diversidad, la cobertura y la equitatividad debido a que predomina el pavimento. Estos contrastes
registrados en el arrecife Enmedio en la cobertura por especie y por ambiente arrecifal parecen ser
normales dado que también han sido reportados para varios arrecifes del SAV.

Oceans cover more than 75% of our planet. In some ecosystems, such as coral reefs, experts believe that biodiversity is greater than that of tropical forests. Morocco, with its double facade Atlantic and Mediterranean, long of more than 3500 km, is a country deeply influenced by the sea, which implies the existence of thousands of marine species by reports in other countries. Currently, marine organisms are a very important source of new molecules in pharmacology and thus in the development of new bioactive products. Sponges, in particular, given their very primitive origin and persistence during evolution, have developed a chemical defense system. This study aims the biological valorization of crude extract from a marine sponge collected in Atlantic coastal El Jadida: Ircinia spinulosa. The chemical study of Ircinia spinulosa, marine sponge was realized for the first time in Morocco, and revealed that this sponge contains different levels of primary and secondary metabolites. Analysis of fatty acids in the lipid extract of Ircinia spinulosa is performed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to determine the predominance of acid Palmitic. This molecular diversity of sponges has a large deposit of biological and biomedical potential. What pushed us to continue the research to isolate new and original molecules.

Although hexactinellid sponges occur exclusively in deep and/or cold waters, three species of hex-actinellids have been reported from shallow and warm waters in Oligo-Miocene deposits of the Pirabas Formation in northern Brazil: Aphrocallistes estevoui, A. lobata and Manzonia aprutina. Here we reexamine these fossils and show that they are not hexactinellid sponges but instead comprise three species of cheilostome bryozoans of the genus Celleporaria (Family Lepraliellidae). Two of these are new to science, viz., Celleporaria pirabasensis sp. nov. and Celleporaria triangulavicularis sp. nov., and the third could not be identified to species level due to poor preservation. Colonies of all three species are massive and multilaminar, with irregular layers of zooids produced by frontal budding. Autozooids have marginal areolar pores and a rounded, asinuate primary orifice. All colonies also have suboral adventitious avi-cularia and interzooidal avicularia, although of different shapes and sizes. Celleporaria triangulavicularis sp. nov. has distinctive triangular interzooidal avicularia. The underside of the frontal shield was seen only in Celleporaria pirabasensis sp. nov. and Celleporaria sp., in which it is umbonuloid. Ovicells were only seen in Celleporaria pirabasensis sp. nov. and are cap-shaped. The three species differ among themselves mainly in the shape and position of the adventitious and interzooidal avicularia. The presence of several typical bryozoan traits and the absence of spicule traces or any other sponge features clearly demonstrate that these fossils are bryozoans, not sponges. The change in the classification of these fossils from hexactinellids to bryozoans of the genus Celleporaria eliminates the incongruence of the occurrence of deep-water species in the warm shallow water depositional environment of the Pirabas Formation.

Elevated concentrations of an organic compound, 24-isopropylcholestane, found in the Precambrian Huqf Supergroup of Oman may provide the oldest known sponge 'fossil'. This evidence is of critical importance for a properly balanced understanding of the origin of animals. Several different pelagophyte (Class Pelagophyceae part of the Stramenopiles within the Chromaveolata) algae are also capable of producing these exact compounds, and may similarly have done so in deep time. Modern marine algae are also reported to produce structural isomers that are compositionally identical to the sponge marker; they do this in copious quantities. Further, 24-isopropylcholestane can be produced by diagenetic alteration of compounds produced in large quantities by algae. It is also possible that contamination by petroleum derived lubricating oil used when coring while extracting these compounds from subsurface layers, has affected the data. All extinct organisms that may have produced this compounds are unavailable for analysis by the modern organic chemist and cannot be eliminated from the list of possible producers of the sponge marker. There are also significant uncertainties regarding the dating of the strata from which these ancient compounds are found. Although the compounds are widely reported as c. 751 Ma, they are younger than 645 Ma. It seems more likely that these compounds represent algal biochemical evolution at a time when algal burial occurred in great quantity with well known coeval algal fossils but no sponge fossils. The macroalgal biomass may have declined during the agronomic revolution at the base of the Cambrian Period owing to processing by metazoans, accounting for the comparative scarcity of these sponge markers in Phanerozoic sediments, after which time sponge spicules and body fossils become evident.

The depth distribution and abundance of shallow water marine sponges were studied at six stations around Cebu Island, Philippines. Four depth zones were identified: Zone 1 (1-2m); Zone 2 (3-9m); Zone 3 (10-12m); and Zone 4 (13-18m). Analyses by two-way ANOVA showed that the six stations were not significantly different from each other in terms of species richness, density, diversity and cover. However, significant differences were noted between zones in all biological parameters measured. Among sampling stations and depth zones, species percent similarity was low suggesting a highly diverse sponge species around Cebu Island. Clustering of the stations appears to be related to distance between stations.

Η ιστορία που διηγείται ο Γιάννης Γεράκης, πριν από κάθε άλλη αξιολόγηση, είναι μια ιστορία ανθρώπων που αγωνίζονται καθημερινά για μια ζωή με αξιοπρέπεια. Έπειτα είναι η ιστορία ενός απομακρυσμένου νησιού, που ήταν κάποτε τμήμα της Οθωμανικής Αυτοκρατορίας, του οποίου οι πόροι ήταν λιγοστοί τόσο στην ξηρά όσο και στη θάλασσα. Κι ύστερα είναι η ιστορία μιας κοινότητας που συχνά, και στην καλύτερη περίπτωση, κατάφερνε να πείσει τα παιδιά της να μεταναστεύσουν, σε μια προσπάθεια για ένα διαφορετικό, καλύτερο μέλλον, αλλά και με σκοπό να αποκτήσουν μια μικρή οικονομική άνεση που θα τους επέτρεπε να ανακουφίσουν τη δύσκολη καθημερινότητα.

Ο Γεράκης δεν προσφέρει λογοτεχνικές λαβές, ικανές να απαλύνουν τη σκληρή, ξεκάθαρη πραγματικότητα που συνόδευε το πέρασμα των εποχών στο νησί αλλά και μακριά από αυτό.

Δεν υπάρχουν παραχωρήσεις ούτε σε ιστορική ανάγνωση ούτε σε ρομαντικούς τόνους∙και αν ίσως η αφήγηση μπορεί να εξομοιωθεί με μια ρεαλιστική πεζογραφία, τότε η παρουσία πραγματικών και γνωστών χαρακτήρων με τους οποίους ο συγγραφέας μοιράστηκε τη θλίψη, την ταλαιπωρία και αυτά τα λίγα επεισόδια σιωπής που αποτελούσαν παύσεις γαλήνιας αλλά και φευγαλέας ειρήνης, απομακρύνεται από κάθε είδος λογοτεχνικής παραπλάνησης ή ίσως εξαπάτησης που παράγει σύμβολα και κλισέ, δίνοντάς μας μόνο την πειστική εικόνα της ζωής.

Τα γεγονότα που περιγράφονται εκτυλίσσονται στο σύντομο χρονικό διάστημα από το 1900 έως το 1904, με σύντομες αναφορές σε προηγούμενα ή μεταγενέστερα χρόνια, όπως ορισμένα αποσπάσματα μας κάνουν να διακρίνουμε και η διήγηση καταπιάνεται  με πολλά θέματα, που όλα προτείνονται χωρίς κανένα διδακτικό σκοπό εκτός από την εσωτερική ανάγκη να διηγηθούμε σε άλλους τα γεγονότα και τις πράξεις, τα οποία λόγω του μεγάλου σεβασμού που οφείλουμε στους νεκρούς και τη φιλία, δεν επιτρέπεται να ξεχαστούν. Στις σελίδες εμφανίζεται η κατάσταση της ταπεινής ζωής του Καλύμνου που διασταυρώνεται με τη σκληρή εμπειρία της αναγκαστικής μετανάστευσης, για να λιώσει νοσταλγικά στη γυμνή καθημερινή ζωή που μοιράζεται μεταξύ χωραφιών, ελαιώνων, θάλασσας και σπογγαλιείας. Η υπερηφάνεια και η φρίκη εκείνων που τη βίωναν, προνομιούχοι στην αλυσίδα των ταπεινών κατοίκων αυτού του απομονωμένου τμήματος του Αιγαίου, με τους άψογους και αυστηρούς νόμους του, ασκούσαν σκληρή πίεση στον εξαιρετικά ισχυρό δεσμό μεταξύ των ανθρώπων, το μόνο εμπόδιο στην αντιξοότητα και τον κίνδυνο, υπέροχο, για τη ζωή.

ABSTRACT: The Island of Hydra had an important role as a base for sponge-fishing, correlated with its history as a provider of merchant ships and ships of war. The trade extended across the Mediterranean to North Africa. Sponges were treated locally and traded internationally. The trade came to an end in the 1960s. This paper is based on interviews with islanders whose families were active in various aspects of the sponge-fishing industry.

ABSTRAK
Penelitian isolasi dan uji aktivitas antibakteri dari sumber Spons laut (Plakortis simplex) yang berasal dari perairan selatan Gunungkidul telah dilakukan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengisolasi senyawa antibakteri yang berasal dari spons laut (Plakortis simplex) dan melakukan uji antibakteri terhadap bakteri Escherichia coli dan Staphylococcus aureus menggunakan metode difusi agar.
Isolasi dilakukan dengan maserasi menggunakan campuran metanol:diklorometana (3:2 v/v). Ekstrak diklorometana kemudian dipekatkan dan dipartisi dalam etil asetat:air (1:1 v/v). Ekstrak etil asetat diambil dan diuapkan sehingga diperoleh ekstrak kasar kemudian dipisahkan dengan kromatografi kolom dengan eluen berturut-turut dari n-heksana hingga metanol. Ekstrak kasar diuji toksisitasnya menggunakan metode Brine Shrimp Lethality Test (BSLT). Pengujian antibakteri setiap fraksi menggunakan metode difusi agar terhadap bakteri E coli dan S aureus. Fraksi yang mengandung senyawa aktif dianalisis menggunakan Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS).
Hasil ekstraksi diperoleh 0,534 g ekstrak kasar  berwarna cokelat kehijauan dan berbau menyengat. Uji BSLT memberikan nilai Lethal Concentration 50% (LC50) 140,96 ppm. Pemisahan kromatografi kolom diperoleh 6 fraksi pemisahan dengan fraksi 3 diuji antibakteri dan analisis menggunakan LC-MS. Hasil uji terhadap bakteri E. coli dan S. Aureus menunjukkan aktivitas penghambatan yang kuat pada konsentrasi 250 ppm hingga 500 ppm. Hasil analisis LCMS terhadap fraksi 3 diperkirakan senyawa 9,10-dihidroplakortin, plakortin, dan plakortida G.

Kata kunci : Antibakteri, Plakortis simplex, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Metode difusi agar

The present study evaluates the potential of Hymeniacidon heliophila as bioindicator of PAH contamination. For this, concentration of 33 PAH was determined in organisms from sites with different contamination level including the heavily polluted Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro, and less impacted coastal areas. PAH concentration and typology were determined in sponges collected from different depths and in two different seasons. The brown mussel broadly studied as bioindicator was also sampled from the same sites for comparison. Both species provided similar information on total PAH concentration which is related to site contamination level. Sponges, however, revealed slight tendency to accumulation of combustion-derived PAH in relation to petrogenic compounds. Differences in PAH typology between species may derive from the interspecific variation in particle size ingestion. Different hydrocarbon typologies were observed in sponges from dry and wet season and PAH concentration varied with depth. H. heliophila may be used as an alternative approach to investigate the presence and sources of PAH in estuarine areas.

In healthy sponges, microbes have been shown to account for up to 40 % of tissues. The majority of these are thought to originate from survivors evading digestion and immune responses of the sponge and growing and residing in the microenvironments of the mesophyll. Although a large percentage of these microbes are likely commensals, they may also include potentially pathogenic
agents, which under specific conditions, such as temperature stress, may cause disease. Here we report a novel disease (sponge necrosis syndrome) that is severely affecting populations of the sponge Callyspongia (Euplacella) aff biru. Both ITS fungal and 16S rDNA bacterial diversities were assessed in healthy and diseased individuals, highlighting six potential primary causal agents for
this new disease: two bacteria, a Rhodobacteraceae sp. and a cyanobacterium, Hormoscilla spongeliae (formally identified as Oscillatoria spongeliae), and four fungi, a Ascomycota sp., a Pleosporales sp., a Rhabdocline sp., and a Clasosporium sp. Furthermore, histological analysis
showed the dominance of fungal hyphae rather than bacteria throughout the disease lesion, which was absent or rare in healthy tissues. Inoculation trails showed that only a combination of one bacterium and one fungus could replicate the disease, fulfilling Henle–Koch’s postulates and showing that this sponge disease is caused by a polymicrobial consortium.

Prodigiosin produced by Serratia marcescens is a promising drug owing to its reported characteristics of having antibacterial, antimalarial, antimycotic, immunomodulating and antitumor activities. Investigations were made in the present study to screen new strain of Serratia marcescens MBB05; the natural red pigment prodigiosin producing strain was isolated from Western Ghat Ecosystem, Tamil Nadu, India. The regular liquid media currently being used for prodigiosin biosynthesis are nutrient broth, peptone glycerol broth and production medium. For this, eleven natural substrates have been tested. Among these substrates, peanut powder was found to be the best natural substrate at a concentration of 2.0% in distilled water at pH-7; inoculum (5%); temperature (30°C); incubation period of 36 hours. The production was 4.5 times higher (560.4 mg/mL) than the optimized basal medium. A natural media which supports the growth of the bacteria and at the same time prove efficient to activate high levels of pigment production was the aim of this work.

9 8 3 ; I n s a l a c o e t a l . , 1 9 9 7 ) a n d s o u t h e r n A r g e n t i n a ( L e g g a r e t a , 1 9 9 1 ) . T h i s i s e v i d e n c e o f v e r y e q u i l i b r a t e d s e a w a t e r t e m p e r a t u r e s ( L e i n f e l d e r , 1 9 9 4 a ) .

Explants of the sponge Crambe crambe were cultured in natural seawater, with or without marine microalga (Phaeodactylum tricornutum ) in discontinuous flow through systems and in continuous flow-through systems (DFTHS and CFTHS, respectively). Growth was measured as the increase in underwater weight. In the experiment carried out in the CFTHS, the explants average underwater weight increased by up to 1380% of the initial weight in 22 Á/45 days. Growth in DFTHS was much slower producing a gain of up to an average value of 322% of the initial weight in 100 Á/210 days. Growth kinetics varied considerably for different explants. Explants grew fastest in the first 10-days of subculture. The sponges grew better in CFTHS compared with the DFTHS. The high growth rates observed in CFTHS suggest that this technique is a promising method for culturing C. crambe in closed systems. #

Experimental removals of the dominant canopy-forming kelp Ecklonia radiata were conducted at two sites on rocky walls
in New Zealand and monitored for approximately 1.5 years. We hypothesized that the removal of the E. radiata canopy
would affect the structure of subcanopy assemblages, such that there would be a reduction in sponge species richness and
abundance. Furthermore, we investigated the biological and physical (predictor) variables that best explained variability in
sponge assemblages after canopy removal. Canopy removal led to a community dominated by turf algae, which corresponded
with a decrease in sponge abundance and richness. Our results suggest that the Ecklonia canopy may positively
influence the presence of sponge species such as Crella incrustans; we propose that the canopy may allow its coexistence
with turf algae underneath the canopy by altering the light regime and other environmental factors, which may be detrimental
for some species. Our results highlight how any loss of canopy-forming species might have negative effects on
sponge assemblages, which could affect the energy flow and the overall biodiversity found in these habitats.

The Taganga bay supports a strong anthropogenic pressure that threatens the communities and marine ecosystems established in this sector, especially organisms sensible to environmental changes and contamination like the echinoderms. In this study, the structure of the Phylum Echinodermata community in shallows waters of Taganga bay was determined, with the purpose of establishing a base line for monitoring the human activities impact on the marine fauna of this tourist sector. For the survey of the main species of this phylum, field trips were organized from January to September of 2006, identifying the existing species of echinoderms in the area by visual census and manual collects. The samplings were taken in the intermareal zone up to a depths of <10m; the 283 specimens collected were identified in the laboratory of CIZEM at the Magdalena University following the corresponding keys for each class and genus. A systematic list is presented for this locality that includes 18 species of echinoderms distributed in five classes and twelve, being the Class Echinoidea and Ophiuroidea the best represented in terms of richness with seven and six species respectively, as well as of relative abundance

The genus Neopetrosia was characterized by has fine brushes of oxeas issued from subectosomal tracts and compact cho-anosomal network. We report and describe here specimens collected in the coast of Brazil: Neopetrosia sulcata sp. nov. and Neopetrosia proxima. The first was previously recorded from Brazil as Neopetrosia proxima, but it was found that these specimens corresponded to a new species. Thus, we provide here the characterization of N. proxima from Brazilian coast. A taxonomic study of Brazilian samples is given, including description, illustrations and geographic distribution, combined with the comparison of the new species with all other descriptions of Neopetrosia from Atlantic.

Cryptic species are widespread across the phylum Porifera making the identification
of non-indigenous species difficult, an issue not easily resolved by the use of
morphological characteristics. The widespread order Haplosclerida is a prime
example due to limited and plastic morphological features. Here, we study the
reported introduction of Haliclona (Soestella) caerulea from the Caribbean to
Palmyra Atoll via Hawai‘i using morphological characteristics and genetic analyses
based on one nuclear (18s rDNA) and three mitochondrial (COI, the barcoding COI
extension (COI ext.) and rnl rDNA) markers. Despite no clear division in lengths of
the oxea spicules between the samples, both mtDNA and nDNA phylogenetic trees
supported similar topologies resolving two distinct clades. Across the two clades,
the concatenated mtDNA tree resolved twelve subclades, with the COI ext. yielding
most of the variability between the samples. Low sequence divergence values (0.68%)
between two of the subclades indicate that the same species is likely to occur at
Palmyra, Hawai‘i and the Caribbean, supporting the hypothesis that H. caerulea was
introduced to Palmyra from the Caribbean, although whether species came directly
from the Caribbean to Palmyra or from Hawai‘i remains unresolved. Conversely,
the pattern of highly divergent cryptic species supports the notion that traditionally
used spicule measurements are taxonomically unreliable in this group. This study
illustrates how understanding the scale of within- as opposed to between-species level
genetic variation is critical for interpreting biogeographic patterns and inferring the
origins of introduced organisms.

This paper deals with niphatid sponges from the coast of the Bahia State, northeastern coast of the Brazilian shelf (south-western Atlantic). Two new species are described,
Amphimedon estelae sp. nov. and Niphates luizae
sp. nov. A taxonomic study of those samples is given, including description and illustrations. Both species were compared with their congeners present in the Atlantic Ocean.