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Nitrogen sufficiency enhances thermal tolerance in habitat-forming kelp: implications for acclimation under thermal stress
Citation
Fernandez, PA and Gaitan-Espitia, JD and Leal, PP and Schmid, M and Revill, AT and Hurd, CL, Nitrogen sufficiency enhances thermal tolerance in habitat-forming kelp: implications for acclimation under thermal stress, Scientific Reports, 10, (1) Article 3186. ISSN 2045-2322 (2020) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
Copyright 2020 The Authors. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
DOI: doi:10.1038/s41598-020-60104-4
Abstract
Local and global changes associated with anthropogenic activities are impacting marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Macroalgae, especially habitat-forming species like kelp, play critical roles in temperate coastal ecosystems. However, their abundance and distribution patterns have been negatively affected by warming in many regions around the globe. Along with global change, coastal ecosystems are also impacted by local drivers such as eutrophication. The interaction between global and local drivers might modulate kelp responses to environmental change. This study examines the regulatory effect of NO3− on the thermal plasticity of the giant kelp Macrocystis pyrifera. To do this, thermal performance curves (TPCs) of key temperature-dependant traits–growth, photosynthesis, NO3− assimilation and chlorophyll a fluorescence–were examined under nitrate replete and deplete conditions in a short-term incubation. We found that thermal plasticity was modulated by NO3− but different thermal responses were observed among traits. Our study reveals that nitrogen, a local driver, modulates kelp responses to high seawater temperatures, ameliorating the negative impacts on physiological performance (i.e. growth and photosynthesis). However, this effect might be species-specific and vary among biogeographic regions – thus, further work is needed to determine the generality of our findings to other key temperate macroalgae that are experiencing temperatures close to their thermal tolerance due to climate change.
Item Details
Item Type: | Refereed Article |
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Keywords: | ocean acidification, nitrogen, kelp, Macrocystis |
Research Division: | Biological Sciences |
Research Group: | Plant biology |
Research Field: | Phycology (incl. marine grasses) |
Objective Division: | Environmental Policy, Climate Change and Natural Hazards |
Objective Group: | Adaptation to climate change |
Objective Field: | Ecosystem adaptation to climate change |
UTAS Author: | Schmid, M (Dr Matthias Schmid) |
UTAS Author: | Hurd, CL (Professor Catriona Hurd) |
ID Code: | 137850 |
Year Published: | 2020 |
Web of Science® Times Cited: | 38 |
Deposited By: | Ecology and Biodiversity |
Deposited On: | 2020-03-06 |
Last Modified: | 2020-12-07 |
Downloads: | 13 View Download Statistics |
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