RUI - Impaired Metabolism and Performance in Crustaceans Exposed to Bacteria

低氧（缺氧）是生活在沿海沃茨的生物的生活事实。 人类对沿海开发和污染的影响会进一步加剧缺氧。 初步证据表明，虾和蟹等甲壳类动物可能特别容易受到缺氧的不利影响。 甲壳动物鳃在呼吸和血液盐调节中起着关键作用。 鳃还用于免疫防御，甲壳动物免疫系统的细胞（血细胞）与穿透外骨骼的细菌聚集，形成硬结节，阻碍血液流动，从而干扰呼吸。 事实上，在注射了亚致死剂量的细菌的青蟹和小虾中，氧摄取和有氧代谢受到损害。 目前的研究验证了这样一种观点，即即使在溶解氧水平很高的沿海沃茨，对细菌发起免疫防御的行为也会干扰虾蟹进行正常游泳或进食活动的能力，并且这种影响会因缺氧等环境压力而加剧。 太平洋白色虾，凡纳滨对虾，和大西洋蓝蟹，Callinectes sapidus，将被注射细菌，并监测有氧和无氧代谢的变化，以及调节代谢的基因表达。 将对休息、运动或暴露于缺氧的动物进行测量。 预计这些研究将表明，至少在甲壳类动物中，免疫反应本身可能使生物体更难以对缺氧环境作出反应或从事重要的体力活动。 在从事这项研究的同时，这些研究人员将继续与来自美国四所主要本科院校的学生一起教学，培训和出版。

Low oxygen (hypoxia) is a fact of life for organisms living in coastal waters. Human influences of coastal development and pollution can further exacerbate hypoxia. Preliminary evidence suggests that crustaceans, such as shrimp and crabs, may be at particular risk from the adverse effects of hypoxia. The crustacean gill plays a critical role in respiration and blood salt regulation. The gill also serves in immune defense, where cells of the crustacean immune system (hemocytes) aggregate with bacteria that penetrate the exoskeleton, forming hard nodules that impede blood flow and, thereby, interfere with respiration. Indeed, oxygen uptake and aerobic metabolism are impaired in blue crabs and shrimp that have been injected with a sublethal dose of bacteria. The current studies test the idea that, even in coastal waters where levels of dissolved oxygen are high, the act of launching an immune defense against bacteria interferes with the ability of shrimp and crabs to engage in normal activities of swimming or feeding and that this effect will be exacerbated by environmental stress, such as hypoxia. Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei, and the Atlantic blue crab, Callinectes sapidus, will be injected with bacteria and monitored for changes in aerobic and anaerobic metabolism, and the expression of genes that regulate metabolism. Measurements will be made on animals that are resting, exercised or exposed to hypoxia. It is expected that these studies will show that, at least among crustaceans, the immune response itself may make it more difficult for an organism to respond to hypoxic environments or to engage in significant physical activity. While engaged in this research, which addresses questions related to the health of ecologically and economically important species, these investigators will continue to teach, train and publish with students from four primarily undergraduate institutions in the US.