Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel Insights
Coral reefs are declining worldwide due to global changes in the marine environment. The increasing frequency of massive bleaching events in the tropics is highlighting the need to better understand the stages of coral physiological responses to extreme conditions. Moreover, like many other coastal...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-06-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Physiology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2021.656562/full |
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| author | Walter Dellisanti Walter Dellisanti Jeffery T. H. Chung Cher F. Y. Chow Cher F. Y. Chow Jiajun Wu Mark L. Wells Mark L. Wells Leo L. Chan Leo L. Chan Leo L. Chan |
| author_facet | Walter Dellisanti Walter Dellisanti Jeffery T. H. Chung Cher F. Y. Chow Cher F. Y. Chow Jiajun Wu Mark L. Wells Mark L. Wells Leo L. Chan Leo L. Chan Leo L. Chan |
| author_sort | Walter Dellisanti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Coral reefs are declining worldwide due to global changes in the marine environment. The increasing frequency of massive bleaching events in the tropics is highlighting the need to better understand the stages of coral physiological responses to extreme conditions. Moreover, like many other coastal regions, coral reef ecosystems are facing additional localized anthropogenic stressors such as nutrient loading, increased turbidity, and coastal development. Different strategies have been developed to measure the health status of a damaged reef, ranging from the resolution of individual polyps to the entire coral community, but techniques for measuring coral physiology in situ are not yet widely implemented. For instance, while there are many studies of the coral holobiont response in single or limited-number multiple stressor experiments, they provide only partial insights into metabolic performance under more complex and temporally and spatially variable natural conditions. Here, we discuss the current status of coral reefs and their global and local stressors in the context of experimental techniques that measure core processes in coral metabolism (respiration, photosynthesis, and biocalcification) in situ, and their role in indicating the health status of colonies and communities. We highlight the need to improve the capability of in situ studies in order to better understand the resilience and stress response of corals under multiple global and local scale stressors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T01:27:24Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8e6bc69d31164fef9a010fb5656492a9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-042X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T01:27:24Z |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Physiology |
| spelling | doaj.art-8e6bc69d31164fef9a010fb5656492a92022-12-21T19:20:28ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Physiology1664-042X2021-06-011210.3389/fphys.2021.656562656562Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel InsightsWalter Dellisanti0Walter Dellisanti1Jeffery T. H. Chung2Cher F. Y. Chow3Cher F. Y. Chow4Jiajun Wu5Mark L. Wells6Mark L. Wells7Leo L. Chan8Leo L. Chan9Leo L. Chan10State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, ChinaDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, ChinaCentre for Biological Diversity, Scottish Oceans Institute, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, United KingdomState Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, ChinaSchool of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME, United StatesState Key Laboratory of Satellite Ocean Environment Dynamics, Second Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Hangzhou, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, ChinaDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, ChinaHong Kong Branch of Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Guangzhou, ChinaCoral reefs are declining worldwide due to global changes in the marine environment. The increasing frequency of massive bleaching events in the tropics is highlighting the need to better understand the stages of coral physiological responses to extreme conditions. Moreover, like many other coastal regions, coral reef ecosystems are facing additional localized anthropogenic stressors such as nutrient loading, increased turbidity, and coastal development. Different strategies have been developed to measure the health status of a damaged reef, ranging from the resolution of individual polyps to the entire coral community, but techniques for measuring coral physiology in situ are not yet widely implemented. For instance, while there are many studies of the coral holobiont response in single or limited-number multiple stressor experiments, they provide only partial insights into metabolic performance under more complex and temporally and spatially variable natural conditions. Here, we discuss the current status of coral reefs and their global and local stressors in the context of experimental techniques that measure core processes in coral metabolism (respiration, photosynthesis, and biocalcification) in situ, and their role in indicating the health status of colonies and communities. We highlight the need to improve the capability of in situ studies in order to better understand the resilience and stress response of corals under multiple global and local scale stressors.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2021.656562/fullenvironmental monitoringunderwater respirometryfluorometryphotobiologycoral metabolism |
| spellingShingle | Walter Dellisanti Walter Dellisanti Jeffery T. H. Chung Cher F. Y. Chow Cher F. Y. Chow Jiajun Wu Mark L. Wells Mark L. Wells Leo L. Chan Leo L. Chan Leo L. Chan Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel Insights Frontiers in Physiology environmental monitoring underwater respirometry fluorometry photobiology coral metabolism |
| title | Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel Insights |
| title_full | Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel Insights |
| title_fullStr | Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel Insights |
| title_full_unstemmed | Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel Insights |
| title_short | Experimental Techniques to Assess Coral Physiology in situ Under Global and Local Stressors: Current Approaches and Novel Insights |
| title_sort | experimental techniques to assess coral physiology in situ under global and local stressors current approaches and novel insights |
| topic | environmental monitoring underwater respirometry fluorometry photobiology coral metabolism |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2021.656562/full |
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