How does ocean acidification affect Zostera marina during a marine heatwave?

• Published in: Marine pollution bulletin Vol. 194; p. 115394
• Main Authors: Yan, Wenjie, Wang, Zhaohua, Pei, Yanzhao, Zhou, Bin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.09.2023
• Subjects: Marine heatwave; Metabolomics; Ocean acidification; TCA cycle; Transcriptomics; Zostera marina; Zostera marina; Metabolomics; Ocean acidification; Transcriptomics; Marine heatwave; TCA cycle
• ISSN: 0025-326X; 1879-3363
• DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.115394

Extreme ocean events caused by global warming, such as marine heatwaves (MHWs) and ocean acidification (OA), are projected to intensify. A combination of extreme events may have severe consequences for marine ecosystems. Zostera marina was selected to understand how seagrass adapts to OA in extremely hot conditions. By combining morphology, transcriptomics, and metabolomics under mesoscale experimental conditions, we systematically investigated the response characteristics of Z. marina. Extremely high temperatures had a pronounced effect on growth, and the combined effect of OA mitigated the inhibitory effect of MHW. Both transcriptomic and metabolomic results showed that Z. marina resisted OA and MHW by upregulating the TCA cycle, glycolysis, amino acid metabolism, and relevant genes, as well as by activating the antioxidant system. The results of this study serve to improve our understanding of dual effects of factors of climate change on seagrass and may be used to direct future management and conservation efforts. •Under extreme conditions Z. marina grows in both leaf length and wet mass.•Increasing CO2 levels for Z. marina at high temperatures may stimulate growth.•Extremely high temperatures inhibit sucrose and starch synthesis in Z. marina.•Out of 223 identified differentially expressed genes 70 were upregulated.•Glycolysis and the TCA cycle controlling genes and metabolites were upregulated.