Comparative functional morphology and hydrodynamics of sponge aquiferous systems.

该项目将以综合和比较的方法处理海绵含水层系统的功能形态方面。海绵状的海绵状水渠系统表现出比先前假设的更高的建筑图案的复杂性。在这种情况下，目前的海绵流动模型被认为是简化的。由于海绵是固着的滤食性生物，所有主要的生理过程都依赖于运河系统内处理的水。这些过程中的大多数都是扩散受限的(例如，氧气传输)。因此，海绵中特定的运河系统结构模式和生长形式是相互依存的。通过对形态参数的分析，研究渠道体系结构与海绵生长形态之间的相互依赖关系。通过将形态数据、实验确定的流速数据和计算流体动力学结果相结合，将对现有的海绵水流理论标准模型进行改进和扩展，以适应我们对渠道体系结构更复杂的更深层次的认识。根据建模方法，该项目将提供有关海绵中营养物质和气体分布的信息。海绵管道系统功能形态知识的全面扩展将有助于更深入地了解海绵生理，从而支持目前仍在进行的建立海绵栽培方法的努力，这是海洋生物技术和海绵应用天然产品研究的重要前提。

This project will address functional morphological aspects of sponge aquiferous systems in an integrative and comparative approach. Sponge leucon-type canal systems show a higher complexity of architectural patterns than previously assumed. In this context the present model of flow in sponges is regarded to be to simplified. As sponges are sessile filter feeding organisms all major physiological processes are dependent of the water processed within the canal system. Most of these processes are diffusion limited (e.g. oxygen transport). Therefore, a interdependence of specific canal system architectural patterns and growth form in sponges is expected. By means of analyzing morphometric parameters, the interdependence of canal system architecture and sponge growth form will be studied. In combining morphological data, experimentally determined flow velocity data and computational fluid dynamic results, the present theoretical standard model of flow in sponges will be refined and expanded to fit our deeper knowledge on the higher complexity of canal system architectures. Following a modeling approach the project will bring forth information on the distribution of nutrients and gas in sponges. The overall resulting expanded knowledge on sponge canal system functional morphology will lead to a deeper understanding of sponge physiology in general and thus support still ongoing efforts to establish sponge cultivation methods which are an important prerequisite for marine biotechnology and applied natural product research on sponges.