Acid-base regulation and ammonia excretion in aquatic invertebrates with considerations of future environmental changes: Characterization of novel transporters and mechanisms

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Aquatic invertebrates need to excrete CO2 and toxic ammonia as end products from their metabolism. This is accomplished at large by means of their gills or skin. Both molecules function as acid-base equivalents and can be transported either in the gaseous state (NH3, CO2) or in the respective ionic form (NH4+, HCO3-). Excretion must be tightly regulated as shifts of intra- or extracellular pH (pHi or pHe) can cause e.g. loss of protein function and overall physiological impairment. Additionally, extrinsic factors (e.g. pH, pCO2) can affect the animal's acid-base homeostasis and aquatic species are currently threatened by continuously increasing ocean and freshwater acidifications caused by anthropogenic CO2 emission. To date branchial mechanisms of acid-base regulation in invertebrates are poorly understood. In 5 objectives 4 Ph.D. and 2 M.Sc. students will investigate branchial and cellular acid-base regulatory mechanisms employing a variety of different haline invertebrate species to uncover habitat specific differences in these processes. 1) Based on our initial studies we will determine the newly discovered role of the microtubule network in branchial vesicular ammonia and CO2 excretion in 3 different haline crab species. In addition to gill perfusion studies, cellular localization and transport characteristics of the crab's Rh-protein, a predicted dual NH3/CO2 channel, will be investigated. 2) We further discovered 2 novel ammonia transporters, HCN and HIAT, which will be investigated for their substrate specificity (NH3, NH4+, CO2) by heterologous expression experiments and in vivo studies in mosquito larvae, using a gene knock-down approach (RNAi) and ion selective microelectrodes. 3) Regulation of pHi will be investigated in split horseshoe crab gills and leech skin mounted into a transport chamber positioned under a confocal laser scanning microscope employing pH-sensitive dyes. Cellular pHi recovery mechanisms will be studied after apical or basolateral pH disturbances. 4) Gill perfusion studies using transporter specific inhibitors and mRNA expression analysis will provide insights of how a crab that inhabits the extreme environment near hydrothermal vents regulates its pHe and whether physiologic plasticity changes after a 2 week acclimatization to elevated pCO2 levels. 5) A transcriptomic analysis in water flees will unravel mechanisms of adaptabilities towards the predicted future global change scenario (year 2100) in an experiment that spans over 42 generations. Physiological parameters (MO2, [Ca2+], etc.) and plasticity will be monitored over the 42 month long experiment. Outcomes will significantly increase our knowledge of invertebrate acid-base regulation, but will also be critical to evaluate the impact of global change in our ecosystems. Data are also invaluable for restocking efforts of threatened species and invertebrate aquaculture operations.