Cellular Response To Environmental Stress In Coral Bleaching: An Overview

Sustainability of the coral reef ecosystem depends on symbiotic relationship between corals and their algae which is threatened due to various environmental factors. These often lead to mass coral bleaching at global scale. These stresses cause numerous cellular responses among the symbiotic partners although the exact cellular and molecular mechanism by which they fall apart are yet not fully known. Various proximal events like, symbiont degradation, programed cell death and even alteration in gene expression pattern in both the coral polyps and alga due to stress are now increasingly known. These cellular responses weaken the symbiotic stability and stimulate the bleaching phenomenon in corals.