Effects of CO2-driven sea water acidification on the ecophysiology of neritic calcifiers, using the amphipod Gammarus locusta as a model.

该项目将检验这样一种假设，即大气二氧化碳(CO2)浓度增加导致的海水酸化将在海洋生物中造成亚致命的生理压力。沿海水域酸度可能增加对一种广泛分布的甲壳类动物伽马拉斯蝗虫生物学的影响将作为一个实验模式系统进行研究。人们几乎普遍认为，全球工业化国家继续燃烧化石燃料，导致地球大气层中的二氧化碳(CO2)废物堆积增加。这种积累的一个直接和众所周知的后果是全球平均气温上升，这是因为地球辐射的热能被过量的二氧化碳困在大气中。在海洋环境中，大气二氧化碳增加的另一个后果是更多的二氧化碳将溶解到海洋表面水域中。溶解在海洋中的二氧化碳数量的增加将直接影响海水的酸度。随着海洋变得更加酸性，水的化学成分将发生变化，碳酸盐等重要离子的可获得性将减少。溶解的碳酸盐矿物，特别是碳酸钙，对于许多外壳坚硬的海洋生物来说是极其重要的，例如贻贝、牡蛎、螃蟹和龙虾。小型甲壳类双足动物Gammarus losta就是这样的物种。这种生物利用碳酸钙在每一次蜕皮时产生新的外骨骼，因此该物种可能会受到二氧化碳驱动的海水碳酸盐化学变化的影响。碳酸钙在新骨骼中沉积的速度的任何降低，特别是在关键的幼体发育阶段，都将降低生态系统中的种群增长和物种适宜性。该项目将考虑该物种从幼年到成年的所有生命阶段对二氧化碳驱动的海水酸化的潜在差异耐受性。整个生物体生物学的常规测量，如个体生长速度，将与最新的分子技术相结合，以调查对该物种生态生理学的亚致死影响。该项目还将提供一个机会来测试和修改必要的养殖技术，以调查海水酸化对甲壳类动物生命周期的其他阶段的影响，包括繁殖和受精。它还将允许对其他寿命更长的重要海底钙化物种进行“高二氧化碳”实验，例如贻贝。该项目将在英国南安普敦国家海洋学中心(NOCS)进行，该中心是英国的海洋科学英才中心之一，在二氧化碳引起的海水化学变化和海洋生物生态生理学方面有着既定的研究记录。

This project will test the hypothesis that sea water acidification, a consequence of increases in the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2), will create sub-lethal physiological stress in marine organisms. The effects of a potential increase in the acidity of coastal waters on the biology of a widespread crustacean, the amphipod Gammarus locusta, will be investigated as an experimental model system. It is almost universally accepted that the continued burning of fossil fuels by industrialized nations around the globe is causing an increase in accumulation of waste carbon dioxide (CO2) within the earth's atmosphere. One direct and well-known consequence of this accumulation is an increase in the average global temperature, caused as the earth's radiated heat energy is trapped within the atmosphere by the excess CO2. Within the marine environment another consequence of this increase in atmospheric CO2 is that more carbon dioxide will dissolve into the surface waters of the ocean. This increase in the amount of carbon dioxide dissolved in the ocean will have a direct impact on the acidity of the sea water. As the oceans become more acidic the chemistry of the water will change and the availability of important ions such as carbonate will be reduced. Dissolved carbonate minerals, particularly calcium carbonate, are extremely important to a wide range of marine organisms which have hard outer shells, such as mussels, oysters, crabs and lobsters. The small crustacean amphipod Gammarus locusta is one such species. This organism makes use of calcium carbonate to generate a new outer skeleton, or exoskeleton, at each moult and consequently this species might be expected to be effected by CO2-driven changes in sea water carbonate chemistry. Any reduction in the rate at which calcium carbonate can be deposited in a new skeleton, especially during crucial juvenile developmental stages, will reduce population growth and species fitness within an ecosystem. This project will consider the potential differential tolerance to CO2-driven sea water acidification of all life stages of this species, from juveniles through to adult. Conventional measurements of whole organism biology, such as individual growth rate, will be combined with the latest molecular techniques to investigate sub-lethal impacts on the ecophysiology of this species. This project will also provide an opportunity to test and modify the necessary culture techniques to investigate the effects of sea water acidification on other stages in the life cycle of crustaceans, including reproduction and fertilization. It will also permit 'high-CO2' experiments to be conducted on other important benthic calcifying species with longer life spans, for example the mussel Mytilus edulis. This project will be conducted at the National Oceanography Centre Southampton (NOCS), one of the centres of excellence for marine science in the UK and with an established track record of research into CO2-driven changes in seawater chemistry and the ecophysiology of marine organisms.