Ocean Acidification: Predicting "Winners and Losers" to Ocean Acidification -- a Physiological Genomic Study of Genetically-determined Variance during Larval Development

全球二氧化碳的排放正在使世界海洋酸化，因此目前和未来海洋酸化对海洋生物的影响正受到密切关注。越来越多的生物学证据表明，OA可以影响海洋生物生理的许多方面，并且OA反应具有高度的物种特异性。然而，物种的反应可能是消极的，也可能是积极的，这使得在未来海洋环境的各种情况下预测“赢家和输家”变得困难。物种内个体的生理反应也各不相同，但很少有人关注生理上的遗传变异，这将支持对OA增加的适应性反应。这个项目的重点是适应性代谢能力的基因组基础和生物进化的潜力，这些生物比现在的生物更能应对未来的海洋酸度水平。虽然大多数海洋无脊椎动物都有一个幼虫阶段，但目前对这些幼虫形式的生物学理解往往限制了预测未来在各种环境变化情景下的成虫阶段或潜在的“赢家和输家”的能力。要更全面地了解海洋无脊椎动物将如何对世界海洋的变化作出反应，需要综合考虑生理、遗传和环境因素方面的信息。这项研究将揭示一种商业上重要的双壳类软体动物——太平洋牡蛎长牡蛎对OA的反应中基因型与环境的相互作用。这个物种拥有大多数海洋动物无法比拟的遗传和基因组资源，并允许跨代实验。将筛选来自许多不同纯种家庭的幼虫对OA的不同反应。一旦对比反应（表型）被确定，“赢家和输家”的生化、代谢和基因表达基础将被确定。这些生理反应的遗传基础将在下一代中使用性状作图方法确定。这种跨学科的实验方法提供了一种机制上的理解，并将改进对生物适应变化的海洋条件的预测。教育外展将涉及所有项目合作伙伴，他们将为K-12学生、第一代大学生和来自代表性不足群体的学生提供讲座和实验室演示，内容涉及国家粮食安全、海鲜可持续性、生物多样性和保护以及海洋变化。对于科学和政策团体，研究人员将通过出版物、会议和国际合作传播结果。该项目创建的遗传标记和基因表达谱将有助于正在进行的国际科学工作，以注释和组装太平洋牡蛎的基因组序列。由于首席研究人员与美国西海岸牡蛎产业密切合作了十多年，研究结果将直接转化为这个价值1亿美元的产业的改进育种计划。最后，这些基础研究的结果将直接适用于其他高产的海洋物种，其中许多是具有重要商业价值的鱼类和贝类，它们是人类消费的主要食物来源。

Global emissions of CO2 are acidifying the world's oceans, so the impact of current and future ocean acidification (OA) on marine life is under intense scrutiny. A growing body of biological evidence demonstrates that OA can impact many aspects of marine organism physiology and that OA responses are highly species-specific. Species' responses can range, however, from negative to positive, making predictions of "winners and losers," under various scenarios of future ocean environments, difficult. Physiological responses of individuals within species also vary, yet little attention has been paid to genetically determined variation in physiology that will underpin adaptive responses to increasing OA. This project focuses on the genomic basis of adaptive metabolic capacities and the potential for the evolution of organisms better able than those of present-day to cope with future levels of ocean acidity. Though most marine invertebrates have a larval stage, present understanding of the biology of these larval forms often limits ability to predict future recruitment to the adult stage or potential "winners and losers" under various environment change scenarios. Fuller understanding of how marine invertebrates will respond to change in the world's oceans requires a merging of information on physiological, genetic and environmental factors. This study will uncover genotype-by-environment interactions in larval responses to OA for a commercially important bivalve mollusc, the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. This species has genetic and genomic resources that are unparalleled for most marine animals and permit cross-generational experiments. Larvae from many different pedigreed families will be screened for differential responses to OA. Once contrasting responses (phenotypes) are identified, the biochemical, metabolic, and gene-expression bases of the "winners and losers" will be identified. The genetic basis of these physiological responses will then be determined in the following generation, using trait-mapping methods. Such interdisciplinary experimental approaches provide a mechanistic understanding and will improve prediction of biological adaptation to changing ocean conditions.Educational outreach will involve all project associates who will give lectures and laboratory demonstrations to K-12 students, first-generation university students, and students from underrepresented groups on national food security, seafood sustainability, biodiversity and conservation, and ocean change. For the science and policy communities, investigators will disseminate results through publication, conferences, and international collaborations. The genetic markers and gene-expression profiles created by this project will contribute to ongoing international scientific efforts to annotate and assemble the genome sequence of the Pacific oyster. As the Principal Investigators have worked closely with the U.S. West Coast oyster industry for more than a decade, research results will translate directly into improved breeding programs for this $100M industry. Finally, results of these fundamental studies will be directly applicable to other highly fecund marine species, many of which are fish and shellfish of commercial importance that provide a major source of food for human consumption.