Differential transcriptomic responses to heat of in hospite wild-type and heat-evolved Symbiodiniaceae

Adult Platygyra daedalea colonies were chemically bleached and inoculated with Cladocopium proliferum strains (WT10, SS1, SS8). Three months after inoculation, the newly established symbioses were subjected to a heat stress experiment. Corals were split between ambient (27C) and elevated (32.2C) temperature treatments. After 4.9 eDHWs of accumulated heat stress, samples were taken from both temperature treatments for RNA sequencing. Following total RNA extraction, mRNA libraries were prepared and sequenced at Ramaciotti Centre for Genomics. A differential gene expression analysis in response to heat was then performed on coral host and Symbiodiniaceae gene expression data.