Figure 6
Representative confocal fluorescence microscopy images and stills from time-lapse microscopy movies highlighting the distribution, cell composition and mesenterial behaviour during the contact response phase. (a) The fragment deploys mesenterial filaments (MF) en-masse as concentrated balls to begin removing the epidermis of the enclosed SBW of the anchored tissue in contact with the substrate. (b) The removal of epidermal cells leads to the development of cells needed for skeleton precipitation. (c) This image shows the mesenterial filaments in the anchored or compromised tissues with increased numbers of Symbiodiniaceae in the mesentery filaments which could be a sign of their digestion. Skeleton; Sk, mesenterial filament; MF, surface body wall; SBW.
