Physiological and gene transcription assays to assess responses of mussels to environmental changes

Katrina L Counihan; Lizabeth Bowen; Brenda Ballachey; Heather Coletti; Tuula Hollmen; Benjamin Pister; Tammy L Wilson

doi:10.7717/peerj.7800

Physiological and gene transcription assays to assess responses of mussels to environmental changes

PeerJ. 2019 Oct 4:7:e7800. doi: 10.7717/peerj.7800. eCollection 2019.

Authors

Katrina L Counihan¹, Lizabeth Bowen², Brenda Ballachey³, Heather Coletti⁴, Tuula Hollmen⁵, Benjamin Pister⁶, Tammy L Wilson^{4

7}

Affiliations

¹ Alaska SeaLife Center, Seward, AK, United States of America.
² US Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Davis, CA, United States of America.
³ US Geological Survey, Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, AK, United States of America.
⁴ Inventory and Monitoring Program, Southwest Alaska Network, National Park Service, Anchorage, AK, United States of America.
⁵ College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, University of Alaska-Fairbanks and Alaska SeaLife Center, Seward, AK, United States of America.
⁶ Ocean Alaska Science and Learning Center, National Park Service, Anchorage, AK, United States of America.
⁷ Department of Natural Resource Management, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD, United States of America.

Abstract

Coastal regions worldwide face increasing management concerns due to natural and anthropogenic forces that have the potential to significantly degrade nearshore marine resources. The goal of our study was to develop and test a monitoring strategy for nearshore marine ecosystems in remote areas that are not readily accessible for sampling. Mussel species have been used extensively to assess ecosystem vulnerability to multiple, interacting stressors. We sampled bay mussels (Mytilus trossulus) in 2015 and 2016 from six intertidal sites in Lake Clark and Katmai National Parks and Preserves, in south-central Alaska. Reference ranges for physiological assays and gene transcription were determined for use in future assessment efforts. Both techniques identified differences among sites, suggesting influences of both large-scale and local environmental factors and underscoring the value of this combined approach to ecosystem health monitoring.

Keywords: Alaska; Biomarker; Ecosystem management; Gene transcription; Monitoring; Mytilus trossulus; Nearshore marine ecosystem.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Park Service Park Foundation. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.