Outreach

Did you know that some sea slugs form unique partnerships with microalgae?

These colorful creatures 🐌✨ are more than the amazing "butterflies of the sea", they’ve mastered a fascinating survival trick which involve microalgae!

Here we introduce the sea slug Berghia stephanieae (Picture: G. Christa - link to the paper). This species, found in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, is a stenophagous sea slug, meaning it has a very specialized diet. Its preferred prey? The glass anemone (Exaiptasia sp.).

Here’s where it gets interesting: these anemones host photosynthetic dinoflagellate endosymbionts. Then, when B. stephanieae consumes the anemone, it also ingests these symbionts, hosting them in their tissues.

Once safely hosted inside the sea slug, the algae continue their photosynthetic work, producing energy-rich compounds from sunlight ☀️. It is thought that B. stephanieae taps into this source of nutrients, essentially using the algae as tiny solar-powered factories!

What’s even more incredible is how B. stephanieae uses its translucent body as a living greenhouse, allowing sunlight to reach the algae for photosynthesis. This partnership highlights the ingenuity of nature in marine ecosystems.

So next time you see a sea slug gliding gracefully over the reef, remember, it might be carrying a miniature forest of algae, working together in a dazzling display of evolutionary teamwork!✨

Want to know more about photosymbiosis? Do not hesitate to reach Jenny Elizabeth Melo Clavijo (Link to LinkedIn) and/or read the papers where she was involved avaible here (Link to ResearchGate)

Did you know that some diatoms perform a fascinating chloroplast dance 💃 under high light ☀️? 

Here we introduce Pleurosigma strigosum (Picture: M. Povoa), a beautiful pennate diatom found in shallow marine sediments 🌊. Because these environments are subject to strong light variations, including periods of intense exposure, pennate diatoms such as P. strigosum rely on cellular processes to protect themselves against potential damage to their fragile photosynthetic apparatus.

Recently, it was highlighted that this tiny organism 🔬 is able to perform a fascinating process called karyostrophy, where it rearranges and reduces the size of its chloroplasts in response to light exposure (A. Bastos et al., 2025 - link to the paper 📚). 

This dynamic movement and resizing act like the pupil of a cat’s eye 🐱, contracting to limit light intake and protect sensitive structures within. Similarly, P. strigosum adjusts its chloroplasts to balance capturing energy and avoiding photodamage.

Imagine this microscopic dance inside each diatom cell, where chloroplasts shift and shrink like dancers in a perfectly choreographed performance 💃✨, all to survive and thrive under the ever-changing light conditions of their benthic habitats 

Want to dive deeper into the world of diatom photoprotection and karyostrophy? Reach out to Mariana Povoa (Link to LinkedIn) or explore future studies on this captivating topic!