Transcriptomic insights into cessation of clam embryonic development following transgenerational exposure to ocean acidity extreme
Transcriptomic insights into cessation of clam embryonic development following transgenerational exposure to ocean acidity extreme
Published 22 May 2024 Science Leave a CommentTags: biological response, chemistry, laboratory, molecular biology, mollusks, North Pacific, physiology, reproduction
Highlights
- Transgenerational exposure of Ruditapes philippinarum to OAX resulted in cessation of embryonic development at the trochophore stage.
- Transgenerational exposure to OAX significantly activates immune and apoptosis-related pathways in the offspring of R. philippinarum, causing intense cellular stress.
- Transgenerational acclimation may not be a panacea for marine bivalves to cope with environmental stresses, but also depends on the degree of stress.
Abstract
Ocean acidity extremes (OAX) events are becoming more frequent and intense in coastal areas in the context of climate change, generating widespread consequences on marine calcifying organisms and ecosystems they support. While transgenerational exposure to end-of-century scenario of ocean acidification (i.e., at pH 7.7) can confer calcifiers resilience, whether and to what extent such resilience holds true under OAX conditions is still poorly understood. Here, we found that transgenerational exposure of Ruditapes philippinarum to OAX resulted in cessation of embryonic development at the trochophore stage, implying devastating consequences of OAX on marine bivalves. We identified a large number of differentially expressed genes in embryos following transgenerationally exposed to OAX, which were mainly significantly enriched in KEGG pathways related to energy metabolism, immunity and apoptosis. These pathways were significantly activated, and genes involved in these processes were up-regulated, indicating strong cellular stress responses to OAX. These findings demonstrate that transgenerational exposure to OAX can result in embryonic developmental cessation by severe cellular damages, implying that transgenerational acclimation maybe not a panacea for marine bivalves to cope with OAX, and hence urgent efforts are required to understand consequences of intensifying OAX events in coastal ecosystems.
Xu Y, Luo X., Masanja F., Deng Y. & Zhao L., 2024. Transcriptomic insights into cessation of clam embryonic development following transgenerational exposure to ocean acidity extreme. Marine Environmental Research: 106561. doi: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2024.106561. Article (subscription required).
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