UV-tolerance and instantaneous physiological stress responses of two Antarctic amphipod species Gondogeneia antarctica and Djerboa furcipes during exposure to UV radiation

Obermüeller, Birgit; Puntarulo, Susana; Abele, Doris. 2007 UV-tolerance and instantaneous physiological stress responses of two Antarctic amphipod species Gondogeneia antarctica and Djerboa furcipes during exposure to UV radiation. Marine Environmental Research, 64 (3). 267-285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2007.02.001

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Abstract/Summary

We investigated the shielding against solar ultraviolet radiation and inducible damage, as well as the short-term response of whole animal metabolic rate in two Antarctic shallow water amphipod species. Light absorbance by the carapace of Gondogeneia antarctica and Djerboa furcipes was higher in the UVR (UVB + UVA) range (42. 1 % and 54.5% on average respectively) compared to the PAR (photosynthetically active radiation) range (38. 1 % and 50. 1 % respectively) of the solar spectrum. Bands of higher absorbance correlated with maximal absorbance ranges of sunscreening compounds indicating mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) and carotenoids to be innate compounds of the exoskeleton of these species. Though the antioxidant enzyme catalase was photoinhibited, protein damage products did not accumulate under experimental exposure to a daily dose of 6.84 kJ m(-2) d(-1) UVB, 66.24 kJ m(-2) d(-1) UVA and 103.14 kJ m(-2) d(-1) PAR. Animal oxygen consumption during UV-exposure was measured as an indicator of immediate behavioural and physiological stress response. UVB as well as UVA induced a response with altered and highly variable respiratory intensity. Our findings indicate that sub-lethal UVR exposure causes increased oxygen consumption in polar amphipods due to radiation avoidance, shelter seeking behaviour, and presumably also from cellular repair processes.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2007.02.001
Programmes:	BAS Programmes > Other Special Projects
ISSN:	0141-1136
NORA Subject Terms:	Zoology Biology and Microbiology Earth Sciences
Date made live:	19 Oct 2011 14:40 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/11856

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2007.02.001

Programmes:

BAS Programmes > Other Special Projects

ISSN:

0141-1136

NORA Subject Terms:

Zoology
Biology and Microbiology
Earth Sciences

Date made live:

19 Oct 2011 14:40 +0 (UTC)