CAREER: Temperature and microplastic effects on coral physiology and reproduction

该项目涉及对气候变化和塑料污染对地球上最多样化和最多产的生态系统之一的生物影响的研究。目前，关于热带系统中微塑料(塑料颗粒为5毫米)的丰度和分布的信息有限。这项研究使用水、沉积物和珊瑚组织的样本来检查夏威夷珊瑚礁中微塑料的丰度和化学特性。多个应激源实验正在提供关于微塑料在健康状态受损(漂白)的珊瑚中的繁殖和长期影响的关键见解。这些实验解决了这一新兴领域中有争议的发现，例如珊瑚如何更容易受到增塑剂的影响，以及哪些微塑料类型更“美味”。了解微塑料是否以及哪种类型的微塑料可以干扰珊瑚体内的生物过程，有助于阐明微塑料在多大程度上导致新陈代谢紊乱，并影响后代的生存和招募。当在全球变化的背景下使用这些数据时，这些数据对于预测这些综合应激源对未来珊瑚和珊瑚礁的潜在影响至关重要。该项目为夏威夷沉浸式学校的教师创建了一个促进公民科学、中学生参与、海洋素养和研究的综合计划。通过研究目标获得的基本见解提高了我们预测珊瑚群落对热漂白事件和微塑料污染的反应的能力，并可应用于养护和管理工作。气候变化和污染是全球珊瑚礁生态系统退化的主要驱动因素。每年约有800万吨塑料最终进入海洋，目前在海洋中发现的大多数塑料物品都是微塑料。最近的证据表明，微塑料污染会对珊瑚产生负面影响。然而，关于珊瑚礁中微塑料的丰度、暴露和风险，以及微塑料是否会增加珊瑚对气候变化的脆弱性，人们知之甚少。研究的目的是：(I)通过野外和实验室研究，评估温度和微塑料(5 mm塑料颗粒)是否以及如何影响珊瑚的配子发生、繁殖力和生理性能；(Ii)量化漂白的珊瑚是否由于异养可塑性而更有可能摄取微塑料；(Iii)研究在热胁迫下和漂白后的恢复期间，珊瑚暴露于微塑料的生理效应；以及(Iii)了解暴露于微塑料可能影响产卵同步性和配子活力的机制。通过(I)设计一个公民科学项目来量化和收集夏威夷海滩的塑料数据，(Ii)为来自低收入学校的中学生提供研究机会以获得第一手实地考察和研究经验，以及(Iii)为夏威夷教师开发一个研讨会，使用NSF-LTER儿童双语书籍作为研究和教育平台。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project involves research on the biological impacts of climate change and plastic pollution in one of the most diverse and productive ecosystems on Earth. At present, limited information exists on the abundance and distribution of microplastics (plastic particles 5 mm) in tropical systems. This research examines microplastics abundance and chemical identity in Hawaiian coral reefs using samples from water, sediments, and coral tissue. Multiple stressor experiments are providing key insights on the reproduction and the long-term effects of microplastics in corals with a compromised health state (bleached). The experiments address controversial findings in this emerging field such as how corals are more affected by plasticizers and what microplastic types are “tastier.” Understanding if and what type of microplastics can interfere with biological processes in corals helps to elucidate the extent to which microplastics cause metabolic disorders and influence the survival and recruitment of future generations. When used in the context of global change, these data are critical for predicting the potential impact of these combined stressors on future corals and coral reefs. This project creates and an integrated program that promotes citizen science, middle-school student engagement and ocean literacy and research for schoolteachers from Hawaiian immersion schools. The foundational insights gained through the research objectives improve our capacity to predict the response of coral communities to thermal bleaching events and microplastic pollution and can be applied to conservation and management efforts. Climate change and pollution are major drivers in the degradation of coral reef ecosystems worldwide. Around 8 million tons of plastic end up in the oceans every year and the majority of plastic items currently found in the ocean are microplastics. Recent evidence suggests that microplastic pollution can negatively affect corals. However, little is known about the abundance, exposure and risk of microplastics in coral reefs or whether microplastics will increase the vulnerability of corals to climate change. The research objectives are to: (i) Assess if and how temperature and microplastics (plastic particles 5 mm) affect coral gametogenesis, fecundity and physiological performance with both field and laboratory studies, (ii) Quantify if bleached corals are more likely to ingest microplastics due to heterotrophic plasticity, (iii) Examine the physiological effects of microplastics exposure in corals under thermal stress and during recovery after bleaching, and (iii) Understand the mechanisms by which microplastics exposure may impact spawning synchrony and gamete viability. The proposed education program is integrated with the research program by (i) designing a citizen science project to quantify and collect plastic data in Hawaiian beaches, (ii) providing research opportunities to middle-school students from low-income schools to gain first-hand field and research experience and (iii) developing a workshop for Hawaiian teachers using the bilingual NSF-LTER children’s book as a research and educational platform.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.