Transmission of ultraviolet radiation through the Antarctic annual sea ice and its biological effects on sea urchin embryos

Lesser, Michael P.; Lamare, Miles D.; Barker, Mike

doi:10.4319/lo.2004.49.6.1957

Cited by 46 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Our recent observations confirm that Antarctic marine larvae are very sensitive to UV-R (Lesser et al, 2004). Echinoid embryos exposed to ambient UV-R under annual Antarctic sea ice (a low UV-R environment with irradiances р1% of surface irradiances), exhibited significantly higher rates of mortality, abnormal development (Ϸ30-50%), and DNA damage than embryos exposed concurrently but under a UV-R filter.…”

supporting

confidence: 66%

DNA photorepair in echinoid embryos: effects of temperature on repair rate in Antarctic and non-Antarctic species

Lamare

Barker

Lesser

et al. 2006

Journal of Experimental Biology

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Over recent geological time the Antarctic marine system has been a relatively low ultraviolet radiation (UV-R) environment because of its polar location, high atmospheric ozone concentrations, and extensive seasonal covering by relatively opaque, and highly reflective, sea ice. Recent increases in ultraviolet-B radiation (280-315·nm) due to stratospheric ozone depletion have highlighted the susceptibility of marine ecosystems to this important abiotic factor (Smith et al., 1992;Karentz, 1994;Smith and Cullen, 1995). The occurrence of the spring ozone hole coincides with the development of embryos of many Antarctic marine invertebrates that may be susceptible to the effects of UV-R because of their small size, lack of a protective tegument, and high rate of cell division (Johnsen and Widder, 2001). Antarctic embryos may be especially vulnerable because they have unique physiological adaptations to survive the cold, food-poor Antarctic waters (cf. Marsh et al., 2001).Our recent observations confirm that Antarctic marine larvae are very sensitive to UV-R (Lesser et al., 2004). Echinoid embryos exposed to ambient UV-R under annual Antarctic sea ice (a low UV-R environment with irradiances р1% of surface irradiances), exhibited significantly higher rates of mortality, abnormal development (Ϸ30-50%), and DNA damage than embryos exposed concurrently but under a UV-R filter. Biological weighting functions for DNA damage and survival To determine if an Antarctic species repairs DNA at rates equivalent to warmer water equivalents, we examined repair of UV-damaged DNA in echinoid embryos and larvae. DNA repair by photoreactivation was compared in three species Sterechinus neumayeri (Antarctica), Evechinus chloroticus (New Zealand) and Diadema setosum (Tropical Australia) spanning a latitudinal gradient from polar (77.86°S) to tropical (19.25°S) environments. We compared rates of photoreactivation as a function of ambient and experimental temperature in all three species, and rates of photoreactivation as a function of embryonic developmental stage in Sterechinus. DNA damage was quantified from cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer (CPD) concentrations and rates of abnormal embryonic development. This study established that in the three species and in three developmental stages of Sterechinus, photoreactivation was the primary means of removing CPDs, was effective in repairing all CPDs in less than 24·h, and promoted significantly higher rates of normal development in UV-exposed embryos. CPD photorepair rate constant (k) in echinoid embryos ranged from 0.33 to 1.25·h -1 , equating to a time to 50% repair of between 0.6 and 2.1·h and time to 90%repair between 3.6 and 13.6·h. We observed that experimental temperature influenced photoreactivation rate. In Diadema plutei, the photoreactivation rate constant increased from k=0.58·h -1 to 1.25·h -1 , with a Q 10 =2.15 between 22°C and 32°C. When compared among the three species across experimental temperatures (-1.9 to 32°C), photoreactivation rates vary with a Q 10 =1.39. Photoreactivati...

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confidence: 66%

DNA photorepair in echinoid embryos: effects of temperature on repair rate in Antarctic and non-Antarctic species

Lamare

Barker

Lesser

et al. 2006

Journal of Experimental Biology

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“…Auerswald et al 2008), although a direct harmful effect of blue light (450 nm) has been detected for the copepod species Diaptomus nevadensis (Hairston 1976). Documented harmful effects of PAR are otherwise rare, although high PAR intensity is known to inhibit photosynthesis in plants (Krause 1988), while UVR commonly known to have harmful effects (Browman et al 2000;Lesser et al 2004;Ban et al 2007;Bancroft et al 2007). However, the UVR treatment contra the control did not prove any difference in the response of the animals, suggesting that A. glacialis is not able to specifically detect UVR.…”

Section: Photoprotectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even though factors like low sun angle, clouds, snow and ice cover and thickness, and particles incorporated in the ice reduce the light intensity penetrating to the underside of the ice, harmful levels of UVR have been recorded under the ice. For example, Lesser et al (2004) linked mortality and DNA damage in sea urchin larvae in the water below 2-to 3-m-thick first-year ice (FYI) to UVB transmittance through the ice. Thus, it seems realistic to propose photoprotection as a reason for the physiological color change in A. glacialis, which thrives under FYI and close to ice floe edges.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The adaptive significance of chromatophores in the Arctic under-ice amphipod Apherusa glacialis

et al. 2010

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Solar radiation is a crucial factor governing biological processes in polar habitats. Containing harmful ultraviolet radiation (UVR), it can pose a threat for organisms inhabiting surface waters of polar oceans. The present study investigated the physiological color change in the obligate sympagic amphipod Apherusa glacialis mediated by red-brown chromatophores, which cover the body and internal organs of the species. Short-term experimental exposure to photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) led to pigment dispersal in the chromatophores, resulting in darkening of the animal. Irradiation in the PAR range (400-700 nm) was identified as the main trigger with high light intensities evoking marked responses within 15 min. After exposure to high PAR, darkness led to a slow aggregation of pigments in the cell center after 24 h. Experiments revealed no statistically significant change in coloration of the animal when exposed to different background colors nor UV radiation. Our results point to a doseand time-dependent photoprotective role of chromatophores in the amphipod, presuming a shielding effect from harmful radiation in a dispersed state. The reversible nature of the physiological color change enables the species to adapt dynamically to prevailing light conditions and thereby minimize the cost of increased conspicuousness toward visually hunting predators.

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“…Given its high-power of penetration, UV-B is actually capable of reaching microorganisms living below ice up to 3-4 m thick (Vincent et al 1998;Lesser et al 2004). The albedo of snow and ice is high, but reaches its lowest levels during spring and summer (i.e.…”

Section: The Impact Of Wpo-cat On Sea Icementioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrogen peroxide production driven by UV-B in planktonic microorganisms: a photocatalytic factor in sea warming and ice melting in regions with ozone depletion?

Moreno

2011

Biogeochemistry

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UV-B radiation activates the synthesis of hydrogen peroxide from water and oxygen in many protein kinds, which having been discovered initially in antibodies, has been so far applied to explore new mechanisms in relation to immune defence. As shown here, the natural association of this common photocatalysis and catalase transforms UV-B photons into heat in a cyclic reaction that represents in biology a basic defence mechanism against UV-B radiation and cold, the activity of which drives the buoyancy and production of planktonic microorganisms in cold oceans. Moreover, given that UV-B radiation reaching the Earth's surface depends mainly on changes in the ozone layer, that defence mechanism over-activated by ozone depletion in microorganisms gathered at the top layer of the water column during seasonal production could result in accelerated sea ice melting, surface warming and ecosystem changes, such as is happening at high latitudes. Thus, one concludes that UV-B-driven photoproduction and decomposition of hydrogen peroxide in plankton can be a new, hidden biogeochemical process under control of the ozone layer with important effects on the ecosystem and climate.

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Transmission of ultraviolet radiation through the Antarctic annual sea ice and its biological effects on sea urchin embryos

Cited by 46 publications

References 34 publications

DNA photorepair in echinoid embryos: effects of temperature on repair rate in Antarctic and non-Antarctic species

DNA photorepair in echinoid embryos: effects of temperature on repair rate in Antarctic and non-Antarctic species

The adaptive significance of chromatophores in the Arctic under-ice amphipod Apherusa glacialis

Hydrogen peroxide production driven by UV-B in planktonic microorganisms: a photocatalytic factor in sea warming and ice melting in regions with ozone depletion?

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