ORCC: Collaborative Research: Mechanisms underpinning the unusual, high CO2 sensitivity of sand lances, key forage fishes on the Northwest Atlantic Shelf

ORCC：合作研究：西北大西洋陆架上主要饲料鱼沙矛对二氧化碳异常敏感的机制

• 批准号: 2307813
• 负责人: Hannes Baumann
• 金额: $ 57.69万
• 依托单位: University of Connecticut
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-08-15 至 2026-07-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2307813&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: ORCC; Collaborative; Research; Mechanisms; underpinning

Ocean warming and acidification are direct, predictable consequences of anthropogenic climate change with likely vast but still insufficiently understood consequences for marine life. So far, most tested fish species appear only mildly sensitive to ocean acidification, but sand lances are an exception. Sand lances are small, eel-like, schooling fishes of enormous importance as food for seabirds and mammals in temperate to polar ecosystems. Recent research conclusively demonstrated that many sand lance embryos have trouble developing and hatching under predicted future ocean conditions. This project uses modern experimental and molecular tools to understand exactly WHY sand lance embryos are so unusually sensitive and which genes and enzymes are responsible for this. Genes will also reveal whether some specific genotypes are less sensitive to warming and acidification, which can then be used to predict whether the species could evolve to be more tolerant over time. Another important objective is to test a closely related sand lance species to find out whether the high climate sensitivity might be of general concern in this important group of forage fishes. This research will provide critical information needed to protect the bioeconomy of fisheries. The project combines innovative ecological, evolutionary, and genomic research to help society anticipate looming marine ecosystem changes in the 21st century, while equipping the next generation of scientists with the needed tools and expertise to succeed in the challenges ahead. The project also creates opportunities for high school students from underprivileged Connecticut schools to accompany the team on sand lance sampling trips to Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Two recent studies on Northern sand lance (Ammodytes dubius), a key forage fish on offshore sand banks across the Northwest Atlantic shelf, have robustly demonstrated that predicted future CO2 conditions induce some of the most severe reductions in embryo survival and hatching success seen yet among tested fish species. This project has four objectives for revealing the mechanisms underpinning this unusual, high CO2-sensitivity as well as the ubiquity and genetic basis of this phenomenon. [1] For the first time, we will rear A. dubius offspring produced from wild spawners to late larval stages at factorial CO2 × temperature conditions to test whether sand lance larvae are as CO2-sensitive as embryos. [2] For the first time, we will use transcriptomic tools (RNAseq, RT-qPCR) to elucidate mechanisms causing ‘CO2-impaired hatching’, focusing specifically on hatching enzymes, to better understand a newly discovered mortality mechanism due to high CO2 in fishes. [3] Modern genomic approaches (low-coverage whole genome sequencing; allele frequency shifts, relatedness analyses) will reveal whether high CO2-sensitivity has a genetic basis in sand lance and could therefore evolve. [4] And for the first time, we will extend CO2 × temperature experiments to a congener, the American sand lance (A. americanus), which provides an important scientific contrast between nearshore vs. offshore species CO2-sensitivities and will yield critical insights whether high CO2-sensitivity is a wider concern within the sand lance family. This award was co-funded through the BIO/IOS Organismal Responses to Climate Change Program and the GEO/OCE Biological Oceanography Program.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

海洋变暖和酸化是人为气候变化的直接、可预测的后果，对海洋生物可能产生巨大但仍不充分的了解，到目前为止，大多数测试的鱼类似乎对海洋酸化仅轻度敏感，但沙枪是一个例外。最近的研究最终表明，许多沙矛鱼胚胎在预测的未来海洋条件下发育和孵化。使用现代实验和分子工具来准确了解为什么沙矛胚胎如此异常敏感，以及哪些基因和酶对此负责。基因还将揭示某些特定基因型是否对变暖和酸化不太敏感，然后可以用来预测。另一个重要目标是测试密切相关的沙矛鱼物种是否会随着时间的推移而变得更加耐受，以查明高气候敏感性是否可能是这一重要饲料鱼群体中普遍关注的问题。保护所需的信息该项目结合了创新的生态、进化和基因组研究，帮助社会预测 21 世纪迫在眉睫的海洋生态系统变化，同时为下一代科学家提供成功应对未来挑战所需的工具和专业知识。康涅狄格州贫困学校的高中生有机会陪同团队前往 Stellwagen Bank 国家海洋保护区进行沙枪采样之旅，这是一项关于北方沙枪 (Ammodytes dubius) 的关键研究。西北大西洋大陆架近海沙洲上的饲料鱼已经有力地证明，预测未来的二氧化碳会导致受试鱼类中胚胎存活率和孵化成功率出现最严重的下降。该项目有四个目标来揭示支撑机制。这种不寻常的高 CO2 敏感性以及这种现象的普遍性和遗传基础 [1] 我们将首次在因子 CO2 × 温度下培育从野生产卵鱼到晚期幼虫阶段的 A. dubius 后代。测试沙矛幼虫是否与胚胎一样对 CO2 敏感的条件 [2] 我们将首次使用转录组学工具（RNAseq、RT-qPCR）来阐明导致“CO2 孵化受损”的机制，特别关注孵化。酶，以更好地了解鱼类高二氧化碳导致的新发现的死亡机制 [3] 现代基因组方法（低覆盖率全基因组测序；等位基因频率变化、相关性分析）将揭示高二氧化碳是否会导致死亡。沙枪对二氧化碳的敏感性具有遗传基础，因此可以进化[4]，我们将首次将二氧化碳×温度实验扩展到美洲沙枪（A. americanus），这提供了重要的科学依据。近岸与近海物种对二氧化碳敏感性的对比，并将得出重要的见解，即高二氧化碳敏感性是否是沙枪家族中更​​广泛的问题。该奖项由 BIO/IOS 共同资助。气候变化组织响应计划和 GEO/OCE 生物海洋学计划。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，认为值得支持。