Meeting Abstract
P1.133 Tuesday, Jan. 4 The effect of ocean acidification on the nudibranch mollusk Tritonia diomedea HUYNH, M*; ANDRILENAS , KK; MURRAY , JA; Cal State East Bay, Friday Harbor Labs; Univ. of Washington; Cal State East Bay, Friday Harbor Labs mike.k.huynh@gmail.com
The observed changes in water chemistry and temperature of our oceans waters today are attributed to increasing levels of atmospheric CO2. Adverse effects such as decalcification brought upon by ocean acidification have been investigated previously but the potential physiological impact on soft tissue has yet to be studied extensively. The well characterized and easily accessible nervous system of the nudibranch mollusk Tritonia diomedea make it an ideal organism for studying the neural circuitry and activity underlying natural behaviors. Previous studies done on the escape swim response in T. diomedea have identified the neurons involved as well as the way in which they interact when this behavior is elicited. Focus of the current investigation was to identify the impact of ocean acidification on the neural mechanisms of, and kinematics of this escape swim. Animals were separated and maintained in aquaria of varying water chemistry and the escape swim was artificially elicited at set times throughout the experimentation period. Comparisons of the parameters of interest in the kinematics of the behavior reveal a 25% decrease in number of swim cycles when concentration of CO2 380ppm compared with 780ppm and 1000ppm (1way ANOVA, p<0.05). No significance was observed in the comparison of swim duration or onset latency across the various water treatments. Intracellular recordings were performed on isolated preparations of the brain as water of varying CO2 concentration was perfused into the recording chamber. There were no significant changes in spike rate, peak amplitude, and width at 50% max amplitude recorded from n=6 neurons, when the CO2 level was changed between 780ppm and 1000ppm. We conclude that ocean acidification may have an impact on the kinematics of the escape swim in T. diomedea.
