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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Modulation of 2′-5′oligoadenylate synthetase by environmental stress in the marine spongeGeodia cydonium

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Recently we established the presence of relatively high amounts of 2′-5′oligoadenylates (2′-5′A) and 2′-5′oligoadenylate synthetase (2′-5′A synthetase) in the marine sponge Geodia cydonium. Here we determined by applying radioimmunoassay and high-performance liquid chromatographical methods that the concentration of 2′-5′A and the activity of 2′-5′A synthetase change following exposure of G. cydonium tissue to environmental stress. The 2′-5′A content and the activity of 2′-5′A synthetase, present in crude sponge extract, increase by up to three-fold after treating sponge cubes for 2 h with natural stressors including heat shock (26°C), cold shock (6°C), pH shock (pH 6), and hypertonic shock and subsequent incubation for 18 h under ambient conditions (16°C). No response was observed after exposure of sponges to an alkaline (pH 10) or hypotonic environment. Similar changes have been found for the expression of heat shock protein HSP70 in G. cydonium. These results show that 2′-5′A in sponges may be useful as a novel biomarker for environmental monitoring.