Collaborative research: Mechanisms of reproductive, developmental, and early life stage impacts of marine oil spills in a vertebrate sentinel model

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Marine oil spills can release large volumes of persistently toxic chemicals into the environment, and many large active oil fields are in close proximity to high-density coastal human populations where humans can be exposed through clean-up and remediation efforts, through contact with oiled media in popular vacation areas, and through the food chain. Despite many large oil spills in recent years close to populated regions, and a few studies testing for acute and psychological impacts in humans, remarkably little is known of the medium and long-term health impacts of oil spills on important biological processes such as reproduction, development, growth, and performance. In this project, a research team from the University of California at Davis, the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, and the Louisiana State University and A & M College will explore the biological impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to study such effects. They will use the Gulf killifish as a sentinel animal model because they offer an opportunity to carefully link cause with effect by virtue of their relatively short life cycle, a well-provisioned molecular and physiological toolkit, their local residence and well-documented exposure to the event in the field, and because they are tractable for laboratory and field studies providing an opportunity to verify predicted effects in the real world. Fish are established models for human health and development, and killifish are particularly appropriate for studying consequences of the DWH oil spill specifically because they are abundant, local, and non-migratory residents of Gulf of Mexico regions directly affected by the spill event. The team already has evidence that killifish were exposed and affected by the event. Now their objectives are to test for oil spill effects at various sensitive stages of the vertebrate life cycle including effects that span generations, to characterize the spatial and temporal extent of vertebrate risk from the spill, and to test for the influence of individual and population genetic variation on sensitivity to oil pollution. Broader Impacts: There remains a clear deficiency in our understanding of health effects from hydrocarbon exposures that emerge over the medium and long term. This research will offer insight into risk and mechanisms of oil spill impacts in a vertebrate model, offer biomarkers predictive or reflective of impaired biological processes, and accelerate the discovery of genetic and physiological risk factors. The project will support the training of PhD students and undergraduate researchers. PhD students from both LSU and UC-Davis will participate in EnvironMentors, a program that pairs graduate students with students from local high schools for an academic year, during which time participants are guided in the completion of an independent research project to be presented as a scientific poster at a local science fair. The LSU group will also present these posters and other summarized research results at Ocean Commotion, a yearly event organized by the Louisiana Sea Grant College Program, which attract thousands of local K-8 students. Given the socio-economical landscape of Louisiana, a diverse elementary school and undergraduate student body will be engaged by these outreach efforts. Furthermore, undergraduate research participation of groups that are historically underrepresented in the sciences will be supported through programs offered by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (LSU), the Louisiana Alliance for Minority Participation (LSU), and Aggie Ambassadors program (UC Davis). JOINT FUNDING BY NSF AND NIEHS: The original proposal on which this project is based (R01 ES021934-01) was submitted to the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH/NIEHS) in response to Funding Opportunity Announcement RFA-ES-11-013 , "Oceans, Great Lakes and Human Health (R01)", an opportunity jointly sponsored by NSF. This project is cooperatively funded through separate awards from NSF and NIEHS.