Marine invertebrates in coastal communities are currently experiencing unprecedented, rapid environmental change. These symptoms of climate change and ocean acidification are projected to worsen faster than can be accommodated by evolutionary processes like adaptation via natural selection, necessitating investigations of alternative mechanisms that facilitate adaptive responses to environmental change. This dissertation posits that in the absence of adaptation, early development (larval) exposure to stressors can increase population tolerance by leveraging existing variation in the energy metabolism and host-microbial interactions. Focusing specifically on resiliency to acidification (low pH), hypoxia (low dissolved oxygen), and elevated temperature stress in the clam, Mercenaria mercenaria, this dissertation uses a combination of laboratory and field experiments in conjunction with next-generation sequencing and physiological assays to investigate the relationship between host health, microbial community structure, and environmental change.
Rugila A., 2022. Acclimatization in a changing environment: linking larval and juvenile performance in the quahog Mercenaria mercenaria. PhD thesis, Stony Brook University, 108 p. Thesis.
