DOI: 10.5061/dryad.cc2fqz6f9
title: Data from: Regulation of green fluorescent proteins by Sea Anemones (Anthopleura spp.) in response to light

description: Green Fluorescent Proteins (GFPs) are a family of proteins with a disjunct
 systematic distribution; their biological functions remain speculative for
 the most part. Here we report studies of 3 closely related species of
 green sea anemones (Anthopleura) that express GFPs throughout their
 ectoderm. Individuals of these species maintain facultative symbiosis with
 zooxanthellae in their endoderm and inhabit the rocky intertidal or
 shallow subtidal. Thus, they depend on exposure to light to maintain
 photosynthesis of their symbionts, and simultaneously need to manage
 stresses associated with this exposure. We present experimental evidence
 that these sea anemones regulate the amount of GFP in their bodies in
 response to the surrounding light environment: they increase or reduce GFP
 when exposed to brighter or dimmer light, respectively, yet they maintain
 some GFP while in darkness, for surprisingly long periods.
description: In general, we exposed sea anemones from the genus
 <em>Anthopleura </em>to variable-intensity light environments,
 then quantified either GFP directly or green fluorescence intensity as a
 stand-in for GFP. Methods and analysis were variable, please see article
 for further details.
description: # Data from: Regulation of green fluorescent proteins by Sea Anemones
 (Anthopleura spp.) in response to light
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.cc2fqz6f9](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.cc2fqz6f9) These data represent two distinct experiments. The first set, as described in our article, was a manipulation of the light environment (independent variable; intensity/lux) in which individuals of *Anthopleura sola* were kept, and then a subsequent quantification of green fluorescence (dependent variable; relative/arbitrary units). The second set, as described in our article, was also a manipulation of the light environment (independent variable; intensity/lux) in which individuals of *Anthopleura xanthogrammica* were kept, and then a subsequent quantification of green fluorescence (dependent variable; relative/arbitrary units). Individuals of *A. sola* did not, when kept under 2 reduced-intensity light environments, change their fluorescence relative to the control.  Individuals of *A. xanthogrammica,* when kept under light environments both reduced and increased in intensity relative to the control environment, reduced and increased their fluorescence, respectively. ## Description of the data and file structure The data file is a .csv file and ordinary to this file type. There are two datasets, they are distinguished by distinct head-sections and labelled on the left with each species; 1 dataset corresponds to 1 species. Columns following in head sections are labelled in the head with the experimental variable the data in the column below each head represents; these heads are self explanatory, but indicated in further detail by the Methods described in the article. ## Data structure The left-most column, SPECIES, in both sets marks the anemone species tested; "Asol" represents *Anthopleura sola* while "Axan" represents *Anthopleura xanthogrammica*. The DAY column represents the numerical day along the time course of the experiment, i.e., the number of days since the start of the experiment. The LIGHT CONDITION columns, in both cases, represent the experimental treatment; 0.38, 0.66, and 1 all represent intensity proportions (and so have no units) relative to a standard (the "1" treatment), while dark, control, and light represent analogues to these in a different experiment (and are arbitrary and so also have no units) - absolute intensity values (lux) are reported in the article. PERCENT CIRCUMFERENCE (tentacle fluorescence) represents the proportion of the full circumference of the circle-circumference of a sea anemone tentacle cross-section through which fluorescence was visible under microscopic examination (it is a proportion, and so has no units); "extensiveness" of fluorescence  coverage is an acceptable and functional way to conceptualize this, but please see the article for clarifying context. FLUORESCENCE INTENSITY and MEAN FLUORESCENCE INTENSITY are our response variables, and represent the brightness of the fluorescence given off by sea anemones, as measured by pixel intensity via computer application (this is an arbitrary metric, where every value greater than 0 is based on a 0 standard set at the time of the experiment, and so has no units). NORMALIZED SYMBIONTS represents a normalized (algal) symbiont count, obtained by counting the number of algal endosymbiont cells visible in a tentacle cross section; the value itself is an index with no units, but it is based on counted # of endosymbiont cells relative to a maximum count. END, in both cases, represents the end of informational columns, no more data.