Abstract: Many recent studies have linked CO2 exposure in fish to a variety of downstream consequences and sub-lethal effects. In a recent review article in the American Journal of Physiology (AJP; 2014), we summarized the literature on ocean acidification exposure in fish from a physiological viewpoint with the intent of identifying patterns and underlying mechanisms associated with significant impacts. Fish are known to be effective acid-base regulators and readily defend pH in bodily fluids, leading to the perception that this compensation confers tolerance. However, the compensated stated involves elevated carbon dioxide gas (pCO2) and bicarbonate buffer (HCO3-) in extracellular and intracellular fluids, a new steady state that has been recently hypothesized to be responsible for a large number of downstream consequences and tradeoffs. This theme, along with suggestions for future research directions will be the topic of discussion for this seminar.

Martin Grosell, PhD, is the lead PI and director of the research consortium RECOVER. Dr. Grosell is a Maytag professor of ichthyology with specialty in environmental physiology and toxicology at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (RSMAS) in the Department of Marine Biology and Ecology. Areas of expertise include trace metal homeostasis and toxicity, oil and PAH toxicity, respiratory gas exchange, cardiovascular physiology, acid-base balance, and osmoregulation in reptiles, fish and invertebrates. Physiological endpoints considered by Grosell’s group span, gene expression, enzymatic activities, immunohistochemistry, embryonic development, water and solute transport by cells and epithelia, respiratory gas exchange, whole animal homeostasis of salt, water and pH, as well as exercise physiology. Dr. Grosell obtained his MSc (1993) and PhD (1997) from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, at the August Krogh Institute.

Rachael Heuer is currently a PhD student at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science (RSMAS). Although Rachael is broadly interested in how ocean acidification affects acid-base balance in marine fish, the majority of her research examines potential impacts of CO2 on intestinal transport physiology at the whole-animal, tissue, and cellular level of organization. Rachael earned her BSc in Zoology in 2006 from the University of Florida and is currently in the final year of her PhD as a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow under the direction of Dr. Martin Grosell.