Paper 1.

1, Unit – 3
Porifera
 The Sponges
 Phylum Porifera (Latin porous, “pore”; ferre : “to bear”).

 They evolved from colonial protozoans and thus they are more
complex than the protozoans. They are pore bearing animals.

 About 6000 living species, most are marine although there are
about 200 freshwater species.
General characters
 Surface bears numerous minute pores known as ostia. These are
openings of canal system (asconoid, siconoid, and leuconoid).
Water current in the body is maintained by the canal system
 Habit and habitat: Aquatic, sedentary, mostly marine but fresh
water also.

 Body: Diploblastic – Ectoderm/Pinacoderm

and Endoderm/Choanoderm layers. and a
non-cellular jelly like mesenchyma layer is
present in between two layers. Body size
may vary from 2cm – 2mt.

 Loosely arranged cells with tissue grade

system.

 Symmetry: Radial (mostly) or asymmetrical.

 One large opening osculum forming the blind sac body plan.

 Cellular organization: Interior lining is made of different types of

choanocytes, pinacocytes, amoeboctes etc...

 Nutrition : Sponges are filter feeders as they sift the phytoplankton

and zooplankton from water.

 Digestion is Intracellular. Choanocytes (collar cells) – found in

endoderm layer; they trap, transport, and digest nutrients for other
sponge cells

 Skeleton: endoskeleton is made of spicules and spongin fibers.

Spicules are chemically made up of Silicon, Calcium and Spongin
fibers and are proteinaceous in nature.

 Sponges have great power of regeneration.

 Locomotion: Absent. adults are sessile, Larvae are mobile

 Respiration by diffusion

 Excretion consists of the diffusion of nitrogenous wastes out

of the cells through canal system

 Reproduction: Some have separate sexes and others are

Hermaphrodite . Asexual by budding & regeneration and
sexual by gametes.

 Fertilization: Internal

 Development: Indirect development with ciliated larva.

 Two types Amphiblastula larva and Parenchymula larva.

 Larval stages of sponges

Reproduction in sponges
Classification of Porifera
Class 1-Calcarea or Calcispongiae

 Habit and habitat: All marine and simple in structure.

 Skeleton: Spicules of calcium carbonate. (3-4 rays)

 All three types of canal system represented (asconoid, syconoid,

and leuconoid).

 Mostly small in size (<15 cm.), and form irregular masses

 Never contain spongin, restricted to shallow water, and strictly

marine

 E.g. leucosolenia, grantia, scypha, sycon etc.

Class Calcarea; examples

Scypha

Clathrina Scyon
Class 2- Hexactinellida or Hyalospongiae

 Habitat: Mostly deep sea.

 Skeleton: Spicules are made of silica Spicules are six pointed and
have a lattice-like structure
 Also known as Glass sponges
 Cup, vase or urn shape
 Canal system : Syconoid or leuconoid

 E.g. euplectella, hyalonema.

Class 3-Demospongiae
 Habit: Mostly marine but includes fresh water species also.
 Skeleton: Have spicules made of silicon dioxide (SiO2) or spongin or a
combination of both
 Spongin gives the sponge its softness and absorbency
 Most sponges belong to this class (90%)
 All show leuconoid type of canal system
 E.g. cliona, spongilla, Spongia spp. (Bath sponge) etc.
 Canal system in sponges
Introduction-
The water circulatory system of sponges also called as canal
system is the characteristic feature of the phylum Porifera. Canal
system is also known as aquiferous system. The canal system of
sponges helps in food acquisition, respiratory gas exchange and also
in excretion.

The numerous perforations on the body surface of the

sponges for ingression and egression of water current are the main
constituents of the canal system. Inside the body, the water current
flows through a certain system of spaces where by the food is
captured from the incoming water and the excretory material is sent
out into the outgoing water.
Body wall of Sopnges
Functions of the water current-
 Water current plays the most vital role in the physiology of the
sponges.

 The body wall of the sponges consists of two epitheloid layers

the outer pinacoderm and the inner choanoderm.

 Pinacoderm consists of porocytes cells which bear openings

called ostia.

 Choanoderm is composed of choanocytes or collar cells. The

choanocytes have collar of microvilli around the flagellum. The
water current is caused by beating of flagella of the collar cells.
The following are the functions of the water current which enters
the body of the sponges through the canal system:

1. All exchanges between sponge body and external medium are

maintained by means of this current.

2. Food and oxygen are brought into body through this water
current.

3. Also the excreta are taken out of the body with the help of
this water current.

4. The reproductive bodies are carried out and into the body of
the sponges by the water current.
 The canal system serves the purpose of nutrition. It is regarded as a
highway for the food through the body cells in the radial canal with flagella,
which capture the food particles. Water currents are produced by flagella.
Thus, waters flows into the central cavity or spongocoel. Smaller food-
particles e.g. diatoms, protozoa and particles of organic debris are ingested
into the cells protoplasm and digested. The digestion is intracellular. Robert
Grant first of all observed the flow of water in the body-wall by adding
powdered carmine to the water. Thus, canal system here does the same
functions as circulatory system in higher animals.

Streaming currents of water have dissolved air, therefore, gaseous

exchange or respiration takes place in the cells. Oxygen is taken in by simple
process of diffusion and carbon-dioxide is given out. The respiration is also
intracellular.
The function of the canal system is also excretory. Currents of water,
which pass outside the osculum remove the carbonic acid and other
nitrogenous waste substances, which are the excretory products of the
sponge body.
Types : 3 main types of canal system
Ascon type:
 This canal system is the simples of all the three.

 It is found in asconoid type of sponges like Leucosolenia and also in some

of the developmental stages of all the syconoid sponges.

 The body surface of the asconoid type of sponges is pierced by a large

number of minute openings called as incurrent pores or ostia. These pores
are intracellular spaces within the tube like cells called porocytes. These
pores extend radially into mesenchyme and open directly into the
spongocoel.

 The spongocoel is the single largest spacious cavity in the body of the
sponge. The spongocoel is lined by the flattened collar cells or
choanocytes. Spongocoel opens outside through a narrow circular
opening called as osculum located at the distal end and it is fringed with
large monaxon spicules.
 The surrounding sea water enters the canal system through the
ostia. The flow of the water is maintained by the beating of the
flagella of the collar cells. The rate of water flow is slow as the
large spongocoel contains much water which cannot be pumped
out through a single osculum.

EX. – Clalhrina & Leucosolenia

The course of water current through

the canal system can be represented
as follows:

Ingressing water- dermal ostia –

Spongocoel- Osculum - Outside
Sycon type
 Sycon type of canal system is more complex compared to the ascon type.
This type of canal system is the characteristic of syconoid sponges like
Scypha.

 Theoretically this canal system can be derived from asconoid type by

horizontal folding of its walls.

 Body walls of syconoid sponges include two types of canals, the radial
canals and the incurrent canals paralleling and alternating with each
other. Both these canals blindly end into the body wall but are
interconnected by minute pores.

 Incurrent pores also known as dermal ostia are found on the outer
surface of the body. These incurrent pores open into incurrent canals.
The incurrent canals are non-flagellated as they are lined by pinacocytes
and not choanocytes. The incurrent canals leas into adjacent radial canals
through the minute openings called prosopyles.
 On the other hand radial canals are flagellated as they are lined by
choanocytes. These canals open into the central spongocoel by internal
ostia or apopyles.

 In sycon type of canal system, spongocoel is a narrow, non-flagellated

cavity lined by pinacocytes. It opens to the exterior though an excurrent
opening called osculum which is similar to that of the ascon type of canal
system.
EX- Sypha

The course of water current through

the canal system can be represented
as follows:

Ingressing water- dermal ostia-

incurrent canal - Prosopyles - Radial
canals - Apopyles –
Spongocoel- Osculum - Outside.
Leuconoid type
 This type of canal system results due to further folding of body wall of
the sycon type of canal system. This canal system is the characteristic of
the leuconoid type of sponges like Spongilla.

 In this type the radial symmetry is lost due to the complexity of the canal
system and this results in an irregular symmetry.

 The flagellated chambers are small compared to that of the asconoid and
syconoid type. These chambers are lined by choanocytes and are
spherical in shape. All other spaces are lined by pinacocytes.

 The incurrent canals open into flagellated chambers through prosopyles.

These flagellated chambers in turn communicate with the excurrent
canals through apopyles. The excurrent canals develop as a result of
shrinkage and division of spongocoel.

 The large and spacious like that of in the asconoid and syconoid type of
canal systems is absent here. Here the spongocoel is much reduced.
 This excurrent canal finally communicates with the outside through the
osculum.
 Eurypylous, Aphodal and Diplodal are different types of leuconoid canal
system
EX – Spongilla
The course of water current through the canal system can be represented as
follows:

Ingressing water - dermal ostia-

incurrent canal- Prosopyles –
Flagellated chambers - Apopyles -
excurrent canals -Osculum- Outside
 Types of Spicules
Spicules are the supportive structures of sponges; made up of silica,
calcium or spongin. Skeletal elements made of spongin are often
referred to as spongin fibers because they are more flexible than
calcium or silica spicules.

On the basis of their size 2 types of spicules are

1. Megascleres
2. Microscleres
Megascleres are large spicules measuring from 60- 2000 μm and
often function as the main support elements in the skeleton.

 Style are monoactinal and monaxon spicules

 Acanthostyles are spiny styles.

 Strongyles are megascleres with both ends blunt or rounded.

 Tylotes are megascleres

with knobs on both
ends.

 Anatriaenes, orthotriaenes
and protriaenes are
triaenes-megascleres with
one long and three short
rays.
Microscleres are small spicules measuring from 10-60 μm and are
scattered throughout the tissue and are not part of the main support
element.

 Anisochelas are microscleres with dissimilar ends.

 Chelae are microscleres with shovel-like structures on the ends.
 Euasters are star-shaped microscleres with multiple rays radiating
from a common centre.
 Forceps are microscleres bent back on themselves.
 Isochelas are microscleres with two similar ends.
 Microstrongyles are microscleres with both ends blunt or rounded.
 Oxeas are microscleres with both ends pointed.
 Oxyasters are star-shaped microscleres with thin pointed rays.
 Sigmas are "C" or "S" shaped microscleres.
 Spherasters are microscleres with multiple rays radiating from a
spherical centre
 On the basis of their axis they are classified into Monaxon, Diaxon,
Triaxon, Tetraxon , Polyaxon etc…

 On the basis of number of rays they are classified into Monactinal,

Diactinal, Triactinal, Tetractinal Pentactinal, Hexactinal etc..
 Importance of Sponges
 Sponges are important because of their roles in recycling
nutrients and the part they play in the coral reef life cycle. For
instance, sponges break down complex organic material into
food for other things living on the coral reefs.

 Scientists believe they may be important factors to changes in

water quality, whether good or bad. Scientists analyze how fast
sponges breathe and the amount of nitrogen they release while
doing so.

 Sponges collect bacteria when they filter the water around

them. These bacteria are believed to be able to create forms of
nitrogen from the nitrogen gas in the water that may be
nutritional for the sponge

 These are not consumed as food due to their bad taste, odour
and sharp spicules
 Provides habitat for animals eg snails, shrimp, sea stars
 Provides food for animals eg snails, small fish
 Provides camouflage for marine animals eg crabs
 Help to clean-up the ocean floor by boring into dead shells and
corals releasing chemicals to break them down
 Used commercially for bathing / cleaning sponges ie dried up
spongin (support material) ‘skeletal framework’
 Produce chemicals used in research for cancer, viruses, and
Antibodies

 Some spong’s toxins are useful to

humans in medicene preparation,
as these have anti-cancer, anti-
viral and anti-bacterial properties

 Used in the glass production