Exploring the boundaries of metazoan thermotolerance at hydrothermal vents: Respiration and protein expression of paralvinellid worms
EMSL Project ID
34697
Abstract
As evidence of global climate change mounts, there is a growing impetus to examine the responses of metazoan life to increasing thermal pressure. Organismal thermotolerance is the subject of many recent investigations, but the advent of new methods and technologies such as protein sequencing via LC MS/MS now offer new avenues of investigation. Similarly, advances in exploration and engineering have made new habitats available for biological research. Deep-sea vents, only discovered in 1977, provide a unique opportunity to examine thermotolerance in one of the most extreme environments on Earth. Unique to these vents, the annelid worm Paralvinella sulfincola has an exemplary thermal range from approximately 5°C to 55°C, one of the most thermotolerant organisms on the planet. These worms, amenable to live recovery and experimentation, were maintained in shipboard high pressure respirometry systems under differential thermal regimes. Our objective here is to employ proteomic sequencing and analyses of experimentally treated P. sulfincola to identify suites of biochemical factors that enable extreme thermotolerance. By defining global proteomic responses to thermal changes in extreme environments, we can identify biochemical risk indicators for all organisms, including those living in threatened and sensitive environments. These stress factors will be integral to understanding the capabilities and limitations of organisms to adapt and maintain proper cellular function under increasing thermal pressure. The unique combination of mass spectrometric instrumentation and the expertise that EMSL provides is vital to the success of these objectives. The data provided by these runs, combined with the interpretive knowledge of EMSL staff, will provide the first coupling between biomolecular function and respiratory data for animals under extreme thermal duress. This will be a significant advance in the fields of thermobiology and deep sea biology.
Project Details
Project type
Exploratory Research
Start Date
2009-09-29
End Date
2010-09-30
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator
Team Members