PREFACE

The idea of this special contribution reviewing the latest advances in spongescience was conceived during the World Sponge Conference held inGirona (Spain) in September 2010. Dr. Michael Lesser, editor of theAdvances in Marine Biology book series, first suggested the production ofa sponge-dedicated monograph. As organizers of the conference, we rea-lized that the amount of information available had increased exponentiallyin recent years. As this overwhelming new information is scattered over anenormous volume of scientific papers published in journals of very differentdisciplines, we agreed that a thorough compilation and comprehensivereview would be appropriate and useful. The monograph could conveythe latest advances in sponge science to sponge specialists besides providing acomprehensive overview to a wider audience with interest in invertebratebiology, marine ecology, molecular ecology, or phylogeny among others.This contribution is timely because we lack reviews in some topics, while inother aspects, reviews were either too old or have become outdated becausesignificant progress has been achieved in the past years. So we took the baitand you have in your hands the results of our efforts to sum up the mostrelevant and up-to-date scientific literature on the Phylum Porifera.

Sponges are extraordinary animals. With over 8000 extant describedspecies, these organisms are major players in many scientific disciplines.Sponges have relevant roles in shaping the ecological functioning of manymarine benthic communities, hold a strategic position for understanding theevolutionary origin of animals, and produce a great variety of secondarymetabolites and skeletal structures that have made them preferred targets inbiotechnological research. This contribution, split in two thematic volumes,comprises a representative selection of the most active fields of spongeresearch. Even if not exhaustive, this multiauthor blend of visions offers awide portrait of the state of the art in sponge science. We have intended thevolumes to highlight recent developments in multiple scientific fields, whileidentifying current limitations and knowledge gaps and delineating chal-lenges and foreseeable future directions.

More specifically, the contributions include an overview of the titanicresearch work performed on taxonomy and ecology of Caribbean spongesover the past decades. The amazing array of ecological interactions in whichsponges engage, with special emphasis on the diversity and functionality oftheir associated microbiomes, are dealt with in other chapters. The revolu-tion that new molecular tools have represented in ecological studies is alsocovered in a dedicated chapter. The role of sponges in biogeochemical

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nutrient cycling is reviewed for the first time. The cell and molecularbiology of sponges is a rocketing field, which gets its most recent advancesand insights discussed from a modern perspective. Some chapters deal withsponge systematics and phylogeny, which are being hotly debated fromseveral points of view, including a variety of hypotheses to interpret therelationships between sponge groups, other basal invertebrates, and earlybilaterian animals. The rich chemical warfare featured by sponges, whichhas made this group a prolific source of new active natural products, has alsobeen addressed, as well as the sponge machinery for processing and accu-mulating silica and its implications in tissue engineering. Although some ofthese chapters provide a good balance between basic and applied research,more biotechnologically oriented issues related to the culture of sponges,sponge cells, or symbionts for the production of chemicals have also foundits place in the monograph. The chapters have been organized in twovolumes: one covering the topics of phylogeny, systematics, and ecology,and the other dealing with physiology, chemical and microbial diversity,and biotechnology.

We address these volumes to both sponge specialists and nonspecialists,pursuing a twofold goal. We have intended to make the forefront of spongeresearch easily accessible to the nonspecialist, illustrating the state of the artof the field, and presenting current controversial issues. For the specialist,we wanted this monograph to be a handy, valuable update on the mostrecent advances in sponge science. We hope we have achieved our goals, atleast partially. It goes without saying that the value of the volumes is mostlythe merit of the contributing authors and the willing reviewers who altruis-tically devoted much time to read and make useful suggestions on themanuscripts. Our warmest thanks to all of them as well as to the AMBeditorial staff who took care of editing and producing these books. We alsothank you, the reader, for your interest in sponges and sponge science.We hope this collection of reviews is entertaining, useful, and inspiring foryou all.

Mikel A. Becerro, Maria J. Uriz,Manuel Maldonado and Xavier Turon