Discipline: Ecology Environmental and Earth Sciences
Subcategory: Ecology
Session: 2
Room: Park Tower 8206
Alexandra Ortiz-Rosa - University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras
Co-Author(s): Manuel Diaz-Rios, University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus, PR; Mark W. Miller, University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus, PR
The onset of climate change, led by environmental pollution and changes in temperature, has had an outstanding impact on wildlife, as well as society. On one hand, as sea surface temperatures rise biodiversity has been affected at global levels. On the other hand, industrialization of plastics in consumer products has led to the presence of contaminants like dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and tributyl phosphate (TBP) in our bodies of water(1). Taking into account DBP and TBP current ubiquitous nature, important questions have been raised about their potential effect on the central nervous system (CNS). DBP and TBP chemical structures allow them to cross the blood-brain barrier(2) and have been known to induce neuronal apoptosis and neurotoxicity(3). Tropical marine mollusk, Bursatella leachii, is resistant organism to environmental challenges and easily accessible on the coasts of the island of Puerto Rico. B. leachii is an ideal animal model to study environmental impacts on neural circuits, as its nervous system retains robust rhythm generating capabilities after isolation(4). We propose to examine contaminant exposure and changes in water temperature effects on specific temporal parameters of motor circuits including cycle frequency, burst duration and phasing at the network (via nerve recordings) and cellular level (via intracellular recordings). Both, intracellular and extracellular recordings, complemented by calcium imaging will be carried out on Bursatella nervous system preparations before, during, and after DBP/ TBP exposure. This will allow us to describe these contaminants’ effects on central pattern generator neural circuits at both, cellular and network levels. Preparations will also be exposed to temperatures ranging from current sea surface temperatures to sub-lethal temperatures will allow us to create a thermal stress response profile for central pattern generator neural circuits at both. Intact freely-behaving adult Bursatella specimens will be monitored to track changes in feeding (bites) and locomotor (distance travelled) activity using an automated behavior recording set-up. This will allow us to shed light on the effects environmental factors have on an organismal level. Our overall hypothesis is that contaminants are expected to affect rhythm generation and ongoing motor programs. Moreover, higher temperatures are expected to increase overall feeding locomotor activity while lower temperatures will dampen overall motor output and calcium signals. This project creates an opportunity to examine parameters, like changes in temperature and contaminants, and their effects on neural circuits responsible for organism survival. Ultimately, contributing to future species conservation efforts. References: Ortiz-Colon et al., J Environ Ana Toxicol 2016, 6:2 Saillenfait et al., Toxicological Sciences 1998, 45(2):212-224 Wojtowicz et al., Neurotox Res 2017, 31:77-89 Miller, M.W., Puerto Rico Health Sciences Journal 1997, 16(1):23-36
Funder Acknowledgement(s): This study was supported by Puerto Rico Center for Environmental Neuroscience (PRCEN) Grant # 1736019 awarded to Mark Miller PhD, University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus.
Faculty Advisor: Manuel Diaz-Rios, PhD, manuel.diaz6@upr.edu
Role: I am conducting all of the experiments and analysis.