Jacques, S. L. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2018

Microscale light management and inherent optical properties of intact corals studied with optical coherence tomography

Coral reefs are highly productive photosynthetic systems and coral optics studies suggest that such high efficiency is due to optimised light scattering by coral tissue and skeleton. Here, we characterise the inherent optical properties, i.e., the scattering coefficient, s, and the anisotropy of scattering, g, of 8 intact coral species using optical coherence tomography (OCT). Specifically, we describe light scattering by coral skeletons, coenoarc tissues, polyp tentacles and areas covered by fluorescent pigments (FP). Our results reveal that light scattering between coral species ranges from s = 3 mm-1 (Stylophora pistillata) to s= 25 mm-1 (Echinopora lamelosa). For Platygyra pini, s was 10-fold higher for tissue vs skeleton, while in other corals (e.g. Hydnophora pilosa) no difference was found between tissue and skeletal scattering. Tissue scattering was 3-fold enhanced in coenosarc tissues (s = 24.6 mm-1) vs polyp tentacles (s = 8.3 mm-1) in Turbinaria reniformis. FP scattering was almost isotropic when FP were organized in granule chromatophores (g=0.34) but was forward directed when FP were distributed diffusely in the tissue (g=0.96). Our study provides detailed measurements of coral scattering and establishes a rapid approach for characterising optical properties of photosynthetic soft tissues via OCT in vivo.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2016

In vivo imaging of coral tissue and skeleton with optical coherence tomography

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive three-dimensional imaging technique with micrometer resolution allowing microstructural characterization of tissues in vivo and in real time. We present the first application of OCT for in vivo imaging of tissue and skeleton structure of intact living corals spanning a variety of morphologies and tissue thickness. OCT visualized different coral tissue layers (e.g. endoderm vs ectoderm), special structures such as mesenterial filaments and skeletal cavities, as well as mucus release from living corals. We also developed a new approach for non-invasive imaging and quantification of chromatophores containing green fluorescent protein (GFP)-like host pigment granules in coral tissue. The chromatophore system is hyper-reflective and can thus be imaged with good optical contrast in OCT, enabling quantification of chromatophore size, distribution and abundance. Because of its rapid imaging speed, OCT can also be used to quantify coral tissue movement showing that maximal linear contraction velocity was ~120 m per second upon high light stimulation. Based on OCT imaging of tissue expansion and contraction, we made first estimates of dynamic changes in the coral tissue surface area, which varied by a factor of 2 between the contracted and expanded state of the coral Pocillopora damicornis. We conclude that OCT is an excellent novel tool for in vivo tomographic imaging of corals that can reveal tissue and skeleton organization as well as quantify dynamic changes in tissue structure and coral surface area non-invasively and at high spatio-temporal resolution.

biophysics↗