Endosymbiosis and cellular tolerance in the Hawaiian soft coral Sarcothelia edmondsoni verrill.

Abstract

The relationship between the soft coral Sarcothelia edmondsoni Verrill and its symbiotic algae is considered as an early instance of cellular tolerance which can be disturbed by a variety of adverse conditions. The algal cells lie in vesicles deep within the endodermal cells of the host and are not subject to digestion. Their expulsion appears to be a reverse translocation to the distal end of the host cell and escape by a form of reversed phagocytosis resembling secretion. The cellular mechanisms involved are not clear.