[Coral-List] Symbiodinium session at ECRS: Abstract submission deadline 30th June

[Edward Smith]

Dear Coral-listers

We would like to remind you that the abstract submission deadline for ECRS
is tomorrow (30th June, 23:59 BST). We would love to hear about your
Symbiodinium research in our session "Diversity and function of coral
symbionts of the genus Symbiodinium - Sentinals of coral resilience". You
can submit your abstracts for this session (No. 23) using the following
link: http://www.reefconservationuk.co.uk/abstract-submission.html

Session details:
Session 23 - DIVERSITY AND FUNCTION OF CORAL SYMBIONTS OF THE GENUS
SYMBIODINIUM- SENTINELS OF CORAL RESILIENCE

Organizers: Christian R. Voolstra, Ben Hume & Ed Smith

Corals and the ecosystems they support have been among the most sensitive
to climate change. However, considerable variations in their response to
environmental stressors are observed. One important factor that contributes
to coral reef resilience is the identity of the coral-harbored algal
symbionts in the genus Symbiodinium. Dinoflagellate algae of the genus
Symbiodinium are important endosymbionts of corals and many other tropical
marine invertebrates. Focus of research over the past few decades has
highlighted how genetic diversity within this genus may be critical to the
longer term survival of coral reefs. However, it is only through recent
technical and conceptual advances that we are beginning to understand the
functional complexity of Symbiodinium populations and how coral reef
communities may adapt to prevailing environmental conditions. Despite this
progress, it is currently unclear how flexible host-symbiont associations
may be and by what mechanisms different algal symbionts may confer
physiological advantages to their hosts. Such knowledge is critical in
gaining further insight into the global capacity of corals to develop
symbioses that will allow them to persist during future shifts in climate.
In this session we invite contributions that explore how  of host-algal
symbioses are challenging established paradigms and shedding light on the
role these symbioses will play in mitigating further loss of coral cover in
reef ecosystems globally. This session will bring together researchers
focusing on basic and applied aspects of Symbiodinium biology and encourage
submissions from across all disciplines.

We look forward to seeing you in Oxford!

Cheers

Ed
-- 
Ed Smith
Postdoctoral Researcher
New York University - Abu Dhabi
Email: edsmith at nyu.edu