Animal and Microbial Adaptations to Ocean Acidification
Loading...
Authors
Ortega, Vicente
Date of Issue
2025-04-25
Type
Presentation
Language
en_US
Subject Keywords
Other Titles
Abstract
The ocean is one of Earth’s most biodiverse habitats, and plays a critical role in economics, food production and climate regulation. However, human activities are significantly impacting the ocean as a consequence of climate change. Two growing problems are ocean acidification and oxygen depletion. Ocean acidification is the result of increased levels of carbon dioxide produced primarily by the burning of fossil fuels being dissolved into seawater, lowering pH levels. Oxygen depletion is associated with agriculture pollution adding nutrients into seawater. The addition of nutrients causes microbial communities to consume more oxygen in seawater than what can be replenished. Consequently, marine animals and microorganisms are experiencing drastic changes to their habitats. Extreme environments such as hydrothermal vents and methane seeps are no exception to experiencing climate change. Due to this, the animals and microbes of the environment must adapt to survive change. However, in many instances science has yet to characterize how these organisms have adapted to live in such hostile environments. The aim of this project is to investigate the expression of key genes in Bathymodiolus thermophilus and their symbiont. As these genes may be the key to their survival in face of drastic changes in pH and low oxygen levels. Development of methodology for the extraction of nucleic acids was key to this research project. By identifying the genes that are expressed that may be contributing to the survival of organisms in extreme environments. Our findings will contribute to understanding ecological responses to climate change within the deep sea.