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

这个项目将检验一个假设，即海水酸化是大气中二氧化碳浓度增加的结果，会给海洋生物造成亚致死的生理压力。沿海水域酸度的潜在增加对一种广泛分布的甲壳类动物，片脚类动物Gammarus locusta的生物学影响将作为一个实验模型系统进行研究。人们几乎普遍认为，全球工业化国家持续燃烧化石燃料导致地球大气中废弃二氧化碳（CO2）的积累增加。这种积累的一个直接和众所周知的后果是全球平均温度的升高，这是由于地球辐射的热能被过量的二氧化碳困在大气中造成的。在海洋环境中，大气中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的表层水中。海洋中二氧化碳溶解量的增加将对海水的酸度产生直接影响。随着海洋变得越来越酸，水的化学成分将发生变化，碳酸盐等重要离子的可用性将减少。溶解的碳酸盐矿物，特别是碳酸钙，对贻贝、牡蛎、螃蟹和龙虾等具有坚硬外壳的海洋生物非常重要。小型甲壳类两足动物Gammarus locusta就是这样一个物种。这种生物利用碳酸钙在每次换毛时产生新的外骨骼，因此，这个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。碳酸钙沉积在新骨骼中的速率的任何降低，特别是在关键的幼鱼发育阶段，都会降低生态系统内的种群增长和物种适应性。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，如个体生长速率，将与最新的分子技术相结合，以研究对该物种生态生理的亚致死影响。该项目还将提供一个机会，测试和修改必要的培养技术，以调查海水酸化对甲壳类动物生命周期其他阶段的影响，包括繁殖和受精。它还将允许在其他寿命较长的重要底栖钙化物种上进行“高二氧化碳”实验，例如贻贝Mytilus edulis。该项目将在南安普顿国家海洋学中心（NOCS）进行，该中心是英国海洋科学的卓越中心之一，在研究二氧化碳驱动的海水化学变化和海洋生物的生态生理学方面有着良好的记录。

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.