USAP-DC

The project will integrate analyses of fish physiology, protein production and genetics to determine if regulation of molecular chaperones (a class of proteins that facilitate the proper folding of proteins in a cell) has been permanently lost in a key fish species (Trematomus bernacchii) inhabiting the Southern Ocean. To do so, efforts will be undertaken to analyze chaperones in these fishes and how elevated temperatures impact protein turnover and protein damage. These studies should more definitively determine if the interruption of chaperone function is environmentally controlled (which could suggest these fish could benefit in some form by increasing sea surface temperatures) or if there is complete loss of chaperone function due to a change in its structure through evolutionary processes (which would suggest these fish are less likely to be able to adapt to warming). In addition to filling key gaps in our knowledge about the diversity and evolution of fishes in the southern ocean and the potential impacts changing temperatures might have on fish populations, the project will support the training of undergraduate and graduate students at an RUI institution. Specifically, activities and content directly related to this project's aims will be incorporated into the undergraduate curriculum at Sonoma State University in an effort to increase undergraduate participation in research, especially with respect to underrepresented groups.

The project has specific aims to perform a comparative analysis of nucleotide divergence resulting in non-synonymous amino acid changes in the trans-regulatory elements, namely members of the heat shock factor (HSF) family of transcription factors, in T. bernacchii and N. angustata. The project will also utilize metabolic labeling of newly synthesized proteins from isolated hepatocytes to monitor protein turnover rates in fish acclimated to both -1.5 and +4 °C for an extended period. Changes in chaperoning capacity and levels of damaged proteins will be quantified in multiple tissues to gain a better understanding of the cellular requirements for maintaining protein homeostasis under long-term acclimations to +4 °C. In combination, the work will help answer questions regarding divergence in these fishes as well a fundamental information regarding protein structure and function that may also have bio-medical implications.

Person	Role
Place, Sean	Investigator and contact

Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems

Award # 1543419

USAP-1543419_1

None in the Database

Repository	Title (link)	Format(s)	Status
NCBI GenBank	miRNA Characterization in Antarctic fish	None	exists
NCBI GenBank	Hspa4 MK948003	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hspa4 MK948003	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hsp90ab MK948004	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hsc71 MK948005	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hsp40 MK948006	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hspa6 MN367221	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hspa12a MN367222	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hspa13 MN367223	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hsc71 MN045883	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hsp40 MN045884	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hsp90aB MN045885	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hspa4 MN045886	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hspa12a MN367224	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hspa13 MN367225	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	HspA6 MN367226	None	no link
NCBI GenBank	Hsp90b MN367227	None	no link

1. Vasadia, D.J., Zippay, M.L., Place, S.P. (2019). Characterization of thermally sensitive miRNAs reveals a central role of the FoxO signaling pathway in regulating the cellular stress response of an extreme stenotherm, Trematomus bernacchii. Marine Genomics. (doi:10.1016/j.margen.2019.100698)
2. Tolomeo, A.M., Carraro, A, Bakiu, R, Toppo, S., Garofalo, F., Pellegrino, D., Gerdol, M., Ferro, D., Place,S.P., Santovito, G. (2019). Molecular characterization of novel mitochondrial peroxiredoxins from the Antarctic emerald rockcod and their gene expression in response to environmental warming. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part C: Toxicology & Pharmacology. 225: (doi:10.1016/j.cbpc.2019.108580)
3. Enzor, L.A., Hunter, E.M. and S.P. Place (2017). The effects of elevated temperature and ocean acidification on the metabolic pathways of notothenioid fish. Conserv Physiol. 5 (1): cox019. (doi:10.1093/conphys/cox019)
4. Tercero, A. D., & Place, S. P. (2020). Characterizing Gene Copy Number of Heat Shock Protein Gene Families in the Emerald Rockcod, Trematomus bernacchii. Genes, 11(8), 867. (doi:10.3390/genes11080867)