Posts Tagged 'review'

Potential governing mechanisms of iodine radioisotopes behavior in marine and freshwater fish: transfer, accumulation, biotransformation, and uncertainties under climate change

Published 12 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Highlights

  • Waterborne iodine isotopes uptake shifts from the gills to the GIT in seawater.
  • Exposure pathway and chemical form shape biodistribution and kinetics.
  • Accumulation in the gills and liver is determined more by species-specific factors.
  • Climate stressors nonlinearly alter iodine isotopes metabolism.

Abstract

The anthropogenic, long-lived radioisotope 129I is a growing long-term concern for aquatic ecosystems due to its predominantly chronic release from nuclear industry facilities, high environmental mobility, and strong biological affinity. Unlike well-studied radionuclides, the mechanisms governing the transfer, accumulation, and biotransformation of iodine radioisotopes in marine and freshwater biota remain insufficiently understood, particularly in fish, which represent a critical link in human exposure pathways. This knowledge gap limits the accuracy of radiological risk assessments and the development of effective mitigation strategies for a contaminant that persists on geological time scales. These uncertainties are further amplified under climate change, as rising temperatures, acidification, and increased co-occurring pollutant loads alter fish physiology and affect iodine metabolism. In aquatic systems, 129I occurs mainly as iodide and iodate, both biologically relevant and involved in enzymatically mediated pathways leading to the synthesis of iodine-containing compounds, including thyroid hormones. Despite the ecological and physiological importance of these processes, existing reviews largely address iodine in fish in a general or thyroid-centered context. This review synthesizes and critically evaluates current knowledge on the mechanisms of iodine radioisotope transfer, accumulation, and biotransformation in marine and freshwater fish, with particular emphasis on membrane transport systems, tissue-specific metabolism, and climate change effects.

Graphical Abstract

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Seawater pH measurement: a critical metrological assessment of operational scales and the unified pH scale

Published 12 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Ocean acidification, driven by rising anthropogenic CO2, causes a measurable decrease in seawater pH with consequences for marine ecosystems. Accurate, traceable pH measurement is essential for ocean monitoring sensors. This critical review examines five pH scales: the IUPAC activity scale (pH), the free proton scale (pHF), the total proton scale (pHT), the seawater scale (pHSWS), and the unified scale (pHabs). For each scale, the analytical methods, metrological assumptions, traceability chain to the SI, and measurement uncertainties are analyzed. The review updates the foundational 2016 work with subsequent developments and focuses particularly on the application of pHabs to saline solutions. In its current differential-potentiometric realization, pHabs yields an expanded uncertainty U(pH) ≈ 0.2 in seawater. GOA-ON expresses its goals as standard uncertainties (k = 1): 0.003 (climate) and 0.02 (weather), equivalent to U ≤ 0.006 and U ≤ 0.04 for k = 2. The reported U(pH) ≈ 0.2 is therefore approximately 33 times the climate-quality target and approximately 5 times the weather-quality target, compared at the same coverage. The dominant contribution is the residual liquid-junction potential; the standard uncertainty of 6.3 mV (k = 1) reported in dilute solutions corresponds, at 25 °C, to u(pH) ≈ 0.1 and U(pH) ≈ 0.2 for k = 2, consistent with the reported U(pH) ≈ 0.2. However, this dilute-solution estimate is not a validated uncertainty for seawater and should not be extrapolated to seawater without experimental validation. Liquid-junction effects are therefore a priority for potentiometric sensors and for the current pHabs realization. Spectrophotometric pHT sensors avoid a liquid junction but have distinct uncertainty contributions related to indicator characterization, optical measurement, temperature, salinity, and sample perturbation.

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Cross-network synergies fundamental to sustained global ocean carbon observing

Published 12 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Abstract

The ocean’s critical role in absorbing anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) and the resulting changes in the ocean carbon cycle are monitored by global-scale observing networks, including the Global Ocean Ship-based Investigations Program (GO-SHIP), Surface Ocean CO2 Observing Network (SOCONET), and Biogeochemical-Argo (BGC-Argo). Given the scale of the challenge to characterize the evolving ocean carbon cycle, no single network is sufficient; a coordinated, collaborative, cross-network approach is essential. This manuscript describes the overarching research questions driving these three networks and details their inherent synergies and dependencies, such as GO-SHIP and SOCONET delivering reference-quality measurements for validation of other in situ and satellite-based data, GO-SHIP providing opportunities for float deployment, and BGC-Argo filling gaps with high-frequency autonomous data. We provide recommendations for optimizing these relationships and an intra-network strategy moving forward. As representatives of the science committees for these networks, we are committed to sustaining and enhancing the collaborative structure necessary to fill critical knowledge gaps in ocean carbon cycle research, improve climate prediction, and enable future ocean ecosystem forecasting.

Plain Language Summary

The ocean plays a vital role in absorbing human-caused emissions of carbon dioxide, but this process is changing the ocean’s carbon cycle. Monitoring these vast global ocean changes requires a coordinated approach involving three major ocean observing networks: GO-SHIP, SOCONET, and BGC-Argo. This paper details how to maximize synergies across these networks to close critical knowledge gaps, improve climate prediction, and enable ocean ecosystem forecasts.

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Red list of ecosystems assessment of Pacific coral reefs

Published 12 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Coral reefs of the Pacific region extend across approximately 30°N to 30°S, covering roughly 35 500 km2. They range from tropical waters of Papua New Guinea in the West to subtropical latitudes, such as Southeastern Pitcairn or Northern Hawaii borders. This encompasses 21 coral reef ecoregions as defined by the Marine Ecoregions Of the World (MEOW) and Marine and Coastal Biodiversity Management in Pacific Island Countries (MACBIO) classifications. The region hosts exceptionally diverse coral and reef fish communities, the latter featuring high levels of endemism in various locations, and is characterised by extensive tropical archipelagos and atolls spanning wide gradients in ocean productivity, human influence, remoteness, geomorphology and climatic conditions. These ecosystems face increasing pressure from ocean warming and marine heatwaves, acidification, extreme weather events, invasive and harmful species outbreaks, overfishing, coastal development and pollution. The IUCN Red List of Ecosystems assessment, based on the benthic and fish datasets from the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (1993-2024) and the NOAA Degree Heating Weeks (DHW) dataset (1985-2025), found that coral reefs within all 21 Pacific ecoregions were at a high risk of collapse (i.e. featuring declining attributes to levels where the ecosystem transforms into a different type or is completely lost). This result was, however, largely driven by future climate change projections. Indeed, several criteria assessed in this work are still showing optimistic trends at the regional scale, especially when looking at the actual distribution of Pacific coral reefs or when comparing past and recent estimates of coral cover decline. Under Criterion A (decline in hard coral cover distribution), about 72% of the Pacific reef surface area (14 ecoregions) was classified as Least Concern, while 14% (3 ecoregions) was Vulnerable and 13% (4 ecoregions) was Endangered. Under Criterion B (restricted distribution), about 95% of the Pacific reef area (17 ecoregions) was Least Concern, while 3% (encompassing 3 ecoregions) was Vulnerable. Under Criterion C1 (observed thermal stress), the trend is reversed, with 49% of the reef area (9 ecoregions) classified as Vulnerable, 19% (6 ecoregions) as Endangered and the remaining 32% as either Near Threatened (5 ecoregions) or Least Concern (New Caledonia only). Criterion C2 (projected thermal stress) drives the entire Pacific reef area and all 21 ecoregions to Critically Endangered. Under Criterion D (alteration of biotic interactions), about 52% of the reef area (7 ecoregions) was either Least Concern or Near Threatened, 16% (7 ecoregions) was Vulnerable and 32% (7 ecoregions) was either Endangered or Critically Endangered. These results highlight the need to consolidate reef resilience towards future climate change and to reinforce the conservation of coral reef habitats through strengthened area-based management, sustainable fisheries operation, climate adaptation measures and accelerated global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

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Warming, thresholds and extinctions: lessons from past hyperthermals on land and at sea

Published 11 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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The current biodiversity crisis is driven primarily by human activities, including global warming resulting from human greenhouse-gas emissions, which act as multifaceted environmental stressors. Rising temperatures compromise organismal performance through thermal stress, creating demographic erosion and triggering ecological cascades that propagate across populations and ecosystems. The fossil record offers a unique archive for evaluating these dynamics, documenting biological responses to a wide spectrum of past climate regimes, including warming events far exceeding those experienced in human history and the conditions projected to take place during the coming century. Drawing on events across the Phanerozoic, we emphasize mechanisms that link climate change to extinction in both marine and terrestrial realms. Extreme ancient warming episodes reveal a recurring “deadly trio” of global warming, ocean acidification and deoxygenation, processes that mirror the emerging drivers of the contemporary crisis. Focusing on the Cenozoic and the Pleistocene Ice Ages, we review mammalian responses to rapid climatic fluctuations and highlight the synergistic contribution of Homo to Late Quaternary megafaunal collapse. Our synthesis shows that past crises provide key insights into extinction thresholds, rates of environmental change, and the vulnerability of ecological functions under warming. Critically, comparison with ancient analogs suggests that future extinction risk on land may exceed anything observed during past warming episodes, due to the unprecedented velocity of modern warming combined with direct anthropogenic pressures such as habitat loss and fragmentation. In the oceans, projected warming and deoxygenation point toward extinction intensities comparable to those of the most extreme hyperthermal events. Collectively, the evidence indicates that Earth is approaching temperature conditions historically associated with major extinction episodes.

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Exploring biomineralization in echinoderms: a review of gene regulatory networks through bibliometrics and comparative genomics

Published 11 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Simple Summary

Echinoderms, including sea urchins, sea cucumbers, starfish, brittle stars, and crinoids, produce mineralized skeletons that vary greatly in form among different groups and developmental stages. Understanding how these skeletons form is important for revealing the biological mechanisms underlying skeletal development and diversity. This review summarizes the development and major research themes of echinoderm biomineralization studies and examines the genes involved in skeletal formation across different echinoderm groups. We show that many genes controlling skeletal development are broadly shared among echinoderms, whereas some genes directly involved in mineral formation vary considerably among groups. By integrating previous biological studies with literature-based and genomic comparisons, this review provides a broader understanding of the molecular basis of echinoderm biomineralization and highlights important questions for future research beyond the extensively studied sea urchins.

Abstract

Biomineralization is a defining feature of echinoderms and underlies the formation of their calcitic endoskeletons. Considerable progress has been made in understanding the molecular basis of echinoderm biomineralization, particularly in sea urchins. However, studies of other echinoderm classes remain limited, and a comprehensive comparison of biomineralization genes and gene regulatory networks across the phylum is still lacking. Here, we combine bibliometric analysis with comparative genomic evidence to summarize current advances in echinoderm biomineralization research. Bibliometric analyses reveal the development of the field, major research themes, and emerging directions, whereas comparative genomic analyses provide an overview of biomineralization genes and gene regulatory networks across different echinoderm classes. Comparative evidence indicates that many transcription factors associated with skeletogenesis are widely distributed across echinoderms. In contrast, biomineralization genes exhibit substantial variation among echinoderm classes. These similarities and differences suggest that broadly shared developmental regulators have been integrated with lineage-specific biomineralization genes to generate the diversity of echinoderm skeletal structures. This review provides a comprehensive overview of biomineralization genes and gene regulatory networks in echinoderms and establishes a comparative framework for future studies of skeletal development, gene regulation, and the evolution of biomineralization across the phylum.

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Pathways to calcification in coccolithophores

Published 11 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Calcification by coccolithophores represents a major biogeochemical process in the oceans. Calcification involves the formation of calcite coccoliths within a Golgi-derived compartment inside the cell. These are secreted to the cell surface where they form the coccosphere. Coccolithophore calcification is underpinned by membrane transport processes that deliver the inorganic carbon and calcium substrates from the external seawater to the site of calcification and by the removal of products, namely protons produced in the calcification reactions. Understanding these critical aspects of calcification will provide clearer insights into the responses of coccolithophores to chemical and physical conditions, both in terms of short-term acclimation and long-term adaptation to a changing ocean. In this review we consider these processes, their localization and the specific transporters likely to be involved. We also consider how transport processes are linked to structural aspects of the cell, providing specialized pathways for the substantial ion fluxes involved.

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The role of international courts and tribunals in shaping expertise – the ITLOS advisory opinion on climate change in an Arctic expertise context

Published 11 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Despite a considerable focus in the literature on how expertise comes to be defined, there has so far been little interest in how expertise is shaped in the wording of treaties and the subsequent application by courts. This presents a gap in the literature, as international treaties and courts have significant impact on the definition of expertise. Set in an Arctic context, where Western science and Indigenous Knowledge are increasingly considered to be complementary bodies of knowledge, this paper uses a decolonial approach to demonstrate how international law and the courts that apply it can impact processes of expertise-building. The paper concludes that there is two-way relationship between international law and expertise (international courts are influenced by, and influence, how expertise is perceived). This becomes relevant when the underlying processes on which the courts base their definition of expertise are shaped by colonial dynamics, as there is a danger of maintaining existing colonial legacies, which can negatively impact the ongoing process of re-defining expertise in a decolonial manner.

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Coastal jellyfish blooms: causes, consequences, and policy frameworks for sustainable management

Published 11 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Highlights

  • Jellyfish blooms creates significant challenges for sustainable coastal management.
  • Blooms are caused by combined influence of environmental and anthropogenic factors.
  • Management approaches can significantly reduce the coastal pollution.
  • Multidisciplinary approach is necessary for long−term success in mitigating jellyfish blooms.

Abstract

The growing occurrence of coastal jellyfish blooms worldwide creates significant challenges for sustainable coastal management. In recent years, occurrence of the jellyfish bloom has also been reported in the coastal area of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, which tend to disrupt the ecosystem balance as well as decreases the appeal of the beach. These blooms are shaped by combined influence of environmental and anthropogenic factors including ocean warming, nutrient enrichment, overfishing, destruction of lobster, sea turtle, and other natural predators, and habitat modification, particularly the expansion of coastal infrastructure that facilitate polyp persistence. Therefore, this review synthesizes worldwide patterns of coastal jellyfish blooms, identifies the key drivers of bloom development and recurrence, and analyzes their ecological and socio−economic impacts. Special attention is given to the consequences for fisheries, aquaculture operations, and tourism, as well as to the role of human mediated environments in reinforcing bloom formation. Moreover, management strategies applied across regions are critically reviewed, revealing uneven implementation and limited long−term effectiveness. By bridging scientific evidence with management needs, this review underscores the need for integrated adaptive frameworks to manage jellyfish blooms under ongoing environmental change.

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Global change reshapes marine microbial communities, functions and One Health outcomes

Published 10 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Marine microorganisms underpin primary production, biogeochemical cycling and host-associated symbioses, supporting climate regulation, coastal protection, fisheries and other ecosystem services. Rapid global change, including ocean warming and marine heatwaves, acidification, deoxygenation, eutrophication, pollution and overuse reshape microbial communities and their functions across marine habitats. These changes can alter carbon, nitrogen and sulfur cycles, promote microbialization and harmful algal blooms, disrupt host–microbiome associations and modify pathogen and antimicrobial resistance dynamics, collectively amplifying the ecological and societal impacts of global change. This Review frames marine microbiomes as cross-scale mediators that translate external pressures, including climate change, pollution, eutrophication and habitat degradation, into altered microbial metabolism, biogeochemical fluxes, host-associated health outcomes, ecosystem service consequences and broader One Health risks. We synthesize shared mechanisms and cross-habitat patterns, highlight cases in which microbiome interventions and stewardship could mitigate impacts and/or accelerate recovery, and outline management options ranging from the reduction of local stressors to emerging microbiome stewardship approaches in ecosystem restoration. Building upon this, we outline pathways for embedding marine microbiome science into globally coordinated One Health strategies, operational management protocols and financing frameworks that align economic incentives with long-term ecosystem and public health outcomes.

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Spectroscopic transduction in miniaturized lab-on-a-chip devices: functional nanomaterials and edge AI integration for real-time in situ environmental monitoring of heavy metals, pesticides, and marine pollutants

Published 9 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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The rising demand for real-time, in situ monitoring of heavy metals, pesticides, marine pollutants, and ocean acidification proxies has exposed the limitations of conventional laboratory-based spectroscopic methods, which suffer from slow turnaround, high costs, and poor adaptability to remote environments. This critical review surveys advances from 2023–2026 in microfluidic lab-on-a-chip (LOC) platforms that integrate functional nanomaterials with spectroscopic transduction (primarily fluorescence, absorbance, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), and quantum dot-based optical detection) and edge-deployable AI. Emphasis is placed on how nanomaterials enhance spectroscopic signals within microfluidic channels while addressing laminar flow control, passive mixing, antifouling, and stability in high-salinity and high-pressure marine matrices. The convergence with lightweight, hardware-aware AI/ML for on-chip denoising, drift compensation, multiplexing, and anomaly detection is examined under strict power and memory constraints. Ocean acidification monitoring requiring high-precision spectrophotometric pH and total alkalinity (TA) measurements serves as a rigorous benchmark for Arctic, open-ocean, and buoy deployments. Performance metrics, matrix interferences, autonomy limitations, and scalability barriers of these spectroscopic LOC systems are critically evaluated, with a forward-looking roadmap toward autonomous, IoT-enabled, and biodegradable spectroscopic microfluidic platforms for sustainable environmental monitoring.

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A review: climate, contaminants and disease dynamics in lobster species Homarus americanus, Homarus gammarus and Jasus edwardsii

Published 5 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Climate change, contaminant exposure, and emerging disease dynamics are increasingly recognized as interconnected stressors affecting marine crustaceans, including lobsters. This review compares three commercially and ecologically important species: Homarus americanus, Homarus gammarus, and Jasus edwardsii. Although these species differ taxonomically and ecologically, environmental stressors rarely act in isolation; climate change and contaminants interact to modify metabolic performance, molting, microbial dynamics and pathogen susceptibility. By synthesizing existing literature, this review identifies shared vulnerabilities and species-specific responses. Evidence suggests differences in thermal tolerance, developmental sensitivity and physiological plasticity, with early life stages consistently representing the most sensitive period across species. The American lobster has the strongest evidence linking warming waters to physiological stress and disease prevalence, particularly in Southern New England, whereas extensive research for European and Southern Rock lobsters remain limited. Across species, warming and ocean acidification often interact with contaminant exposure to alter immune function, molting, and recruitment. Key gaps remain in multi-stressor experiments, disease ecology and early life-stage research, emphasizing the need for integrative multi-stressor and cross-species frameworks to improve predictions of lobster resilience under accelerating environmental change.

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Climate-driven reproductive dysfunction in cultured fish and shellfish: endocrine mechanisms, consequences and adaptive strategies

Published 4 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Climate change is altering the environmental conditions experienced by aquatic organisms through rising temperatures, marine heatwaves, hypoxia, salinity fluctuations, ocean acidification and more frequent extreme events. Although the effects of climate change on growth, survival and disease have received considerable attention, reproductive impairment may occur before substantial mortality and can directly threaten aquaculture seed production. Reproduction depends on the coordinated interaction of environmental cues, neuroendocrine pathways, gonadal function, gametogenesis and energy allocation, making it particularly sensitive to environmental instability. In fish, climate-related changes can affect the brain–pituitary–gonad axis, steroidogenesis, sex differentiation, gametogenesis, gamete quality and spawning. Temperature is especially important because it influences endocrine regulation throughout reproductive development, while hypoxia, salinity changes and ocean acidification can further modify endocrine, metabolic and cellular processes. In shellfish, environmental stress can affect gonadal development, gametogenesis, spawning, fertilisation and larval performance through mechanisms that differ from those operating in vertebrate fishes. Multiple climate-related stressors may also act simultaneously, producing additive, synergistic or antagonistic effects. Parental exposure can further influence offspring through maternal provisioning, paternal effects and epigenetic mechanisms. These processes have direct implications for broodstock conditioning, hatchery seed production and the sustainability of aquaculture. This review examines the links between climate-related environmental change, reproductive endocrine regulation and reproductive performance in cultured fish and shellfish, with emphasis on gamete quality, spawning, early development, multiple-stressor interactions and reproductive resilience. Environmental management, broodstock selection, nutrition, acclimation, selective breeding, biomarker-based monitoring and climate-resilient hatchery technologies are considered potential approaches for sustaining reproductive performance under future environmental conditions.

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Oxidative stress as a potential mechanistic link between climate change and aquatic biodiversity loss

Published 4 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Climate change is rapidly altering aquatic ecosystems through rising temperatures, ocean acidification, hypoxia, ultraviolet radiation, salinity fluctuations, and interacting environmental stressors. These changes impose substantial physiological challenges on aquatic organisms, with oxidative stress representing an important mechanistic pathway linking environmental disturbances to biological responses across multiple levels of organization. This review synthesizes current evidence on oxidative stress responses associated with climate change-related environmental stressors across aquatic taxa, including fish, aquatic invertebrates, corals, phytoplankton, macroalgae, amphibians, and polar and deep-sea organisms. We examine the mechanisms underlying reactive oxygen species production, disruption of antioxidant defenses, and oxidative damage, while critically evaluating biochemical, molecular, and omics-based biomarkers for environmental stress assessment. Particular emphasis is placed on how oxidative stress may translate from cellular and organismal responses into changes in growth, reproduction, behavior, survival, species distributions, population dynamics, community structure, biodiversity, and ecosystem resilience. We also highlight limitations of current biomarker approaches, including species-specific variability, methodological inconsistencies, and difficulties in extrapolating laboratory findings to natural ecosystems. Future research should prioritize integrated multi-biomarker and multi-stressor approaches, long-term ecological monitoring, standardized protocols, and the integration of omics, environmental DNA, remote sensing, and artificial intelligence. Overall, oxidative stress biomarkers provide complementary tools for assessing climate-change impacts on aquatic biodiversity and ecosystem resilience.

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Climate-driven coral reef change and socio-ecological resilience: a bibliometric and systematic review

Published 4 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Purpose

This study examines the evolution of research on climate-driven coral reef change and socio-ecological resilience through an integrated bibliometric and systematic review of peer-reviewed literature published between 2002 and 2025. The study addresses the fragmentation of existing research across ecological, socio-economic and governance perspectives by synthesizing evidence on climate stressors, ecosystem services, human well-being, adaptation strategies and resilience. It aims to map publication trends, identify dominant thematic structures and provide a comprehensive evidence base to support policy development and sustainable management of coral reef ecosystems and reef-dependent coastal communities.

Design/methodology/approach

The study employed a combined bibliometric and systematic review approach following the PRISMA 2020 framework. A total of 588 peer-reviewed publications published between 2002 and 2025 were retrieved from the Scopus database after a structured screening process. Bibliometric analysis was conducted using Bibliometrix (R) and VOSviewer to examine publication trends, citation patterns, collaboration networks and thematic structures. The systematic review synthesized evidence on ecosystem services, human well-being, adaptation strategies and governance mechanisms, enabling an integrated assessment of climate-driven coral reef change and socio-ecological resilience.

Findings

The findings reveal a rapidly expanding and increasingly interdisciplinary research field, characterized by strong growth in scientific output and extensive international collaboration. Six major thematic clusters were identified, centering on climate stressors, coral biology, ecosystem services, adaptation, governance and resilience. The review shows that fisheries, tourism, biodiversity conservation and coastal protection are the most frequently discussed ecosystem services linking reef health to human well-being. Key adaptation pathways include ecosystem-based management, marine-protected areas (MPAs), participatory governance, restoration initiatives and livelihood diversification, all of which contribute to strengthening socio-ecological resilience under climate change.

Research limitations/implications

This study is limited to publications indexed in the Scopus database and restricted to English-language literature, which may have excluded relevant studies from other databases and regional sources. The findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the intellectual development of coral reef socio-ecological resilience research and highlight the need for greater integration of ecological, economic and governance perspectives. Future research should strengthen links between ecological indicators and socio-economic outcomes, particularly in underrepresented regions, to support more context-specific adaptation strategies and evidence-based coral reef management.

Practical implications

The findings provide valuable guidance for policymakers, marine resource managers and conservation practitioners seeking to enhance coral reef resilience under climate change. The study highlights the importance of integrating ecosystem-based management, MPAs, participatory governance and livelihood diversification into coral reef management frameworks. By demonstrating the strong link between reef ecosystem health and human well-being, the study supports the development of adaptation policies that simultaneously protect biodiversity, sustain ecosystem services, strengthen coastal livelihoods and improve the resilience of reef-dependent communities facing increasing climate-related risks.

Social implications

The study underscores the critical role of coral reefs in supporting food security, employment, income generation and coastal protection for millions of people in tropical coastal communities. By highlighting the social consequences of climate-driven reef degradation, the findings emphasize the need for inclusive adaptation strategies that reduce vulnerability and strengthen community resilience. The study also reinforces the importance of participatory governance and livelihood diversification in enhancing social well-being, promoting equitable resource management and improving the capacity of reef-dependent populations to adapt to climate-related environmental change.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the literature by integrating bibliometric analysis and systematic review methods to provide a comprehensive synthesis of climate-driven coral reef change and socio-ecological resilience research. Unlike previous reviews that focus primarily on ecological or social dimensions, it bridges ecological disturbance, ecosystem services, human well-being and governance perspectives within a single analytical framework. By mapping the intellectual structure of the field and identifying key adaptation pathways, the study offers novel insights into the interconnected nature of reef resilience and provides a valuable evidence base for future research, policy, and management.

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The collapse of the marine ecosystems

Published 4 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Over the last 265 million years the ocean has passed through five great crises in which a large pulse of carbon, or in one case an asteroid impact, changed the chemistry of seawater. This report compares those past events with the ocean of today, using two measures: the aragonite saturation of surface water and the share of marine life that was lost. The comparison shows that the modern ocean started from a weaker chemical position than in any of the past events, that its chemistry is now changing faster, and that its animal life has already fallen by between about one half and two thirds since 1850.

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Trace metals in the coral holobiont: roles and regulation in a changing ocean

Published 3 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Trace metals are key regulators of coral reef functioning, acting as essential micronutrients or toxic stressors depending on concentration, speciation, and biological regulation. Corals and their associated holobionts require metals such as iron, zinc, copper, manganese, cobalt, molybdenum, and vanadium for photosynthesis, antioxidant defense, calcification, and nutrient cycling, while elevated levels of these elements, and non-essential metals including cadmium, lead, mercury, and nickel can induce oxidative stress, disrupt metabolism, disrupt coral-algal symbiosis, and contribute to bleaching and mortality. This review synthesizes current knowledge on trace metals in corals using evidence from laboratory experiments, field studies, skeletal geochemistry, and omics-based investigations. The biological roles and regulation of trace metals within the coral holobiont, their physiological and molecular impacts across life stages, and the influence of biogeochemical cycling and environmental drivers on metal availability and exposure in reef systems are examined. Analytical and omics-based approaches for investigating coral and metal interactions are also evaluated. Altogether, current evidence indicates that coral responses to trace metals depend on external metal concentrations, physiological regulation and environmental context. As climate change and anthropogenic activities continue to modify ocean chemistry, redox conditions, and metal bioavailability, understanding these interactions will become increasingly important for anticipating coral responses to future environmental change. Substantial knowledge gaps remain regarding thresholds between essentiality and toxicity, interactions with climate stressors, and holobiont-level metal cycling. Addressing these gaps is essential for improving interpretation of coral metal records, predicting reef vulnerability, and informing effective conservation and management strategies in an increasingly anthropogenically altered ocean.

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The Arabian Seas: a window into future oceans —physical, biogeochemical, and ecological dynamics in unique marginal environments

Published 2 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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The Arabian Sea provide a sentinel system for understanding how global planetary boundary transgressions manifest through regional ocean processes. Their rapid warming, altered circulation, declining ventilation, deoxygenation, acidification, and ecological reorganization reveal interconnected regional manifestations of pressures associated with the Climate Change, Biogeochemical Flows, Ocean Acidification, and Biosphere Integrity boundaries. Regional physical and biogeochemical amplification compresses the timescale over which these pressures become ecologically consequential, exposing regional responses and increasing risks of regime shifts. Although the Arabian Seas possess distinctive environmental characteristics, the mechanisms linking planetary forcing to regional change are broadly relevant to other tropical and marginal oceans. Their present trajectory therefore provides a conditional, mechanism-based analogue for selected processes expected to intensify across future tropical open-ocean and marginal-sea environments. This illustrates how multiple global boundary transgressions may interact to weaken regional resilience and reorganize marine ecosystem function.

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Critical swimming speed in fish: measurement, determinants, and applications in aquaculture and fisheries management

Published 2 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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Critical swimming speed (Ucrit) is widely used as a non-invasive and practical metric for quantifying swimming performance in fish. This review summarizes current advances in Ucrit research, focusing on measurement methods, environmental and biological determinants, and the underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms. We highlight key methodological developments, including step and ramp protocols, while addressing ongoing challenges such as the lack of standardized procedures and the limited comparability across studies. Environmental factors, including temperature, dissolved oxygen, salinity, and ocean acidification, strongly influence Ucrit, while intrinsic traits such as body size, sex, and physiological capacity further shape its variation. Recent studies have begun to uncover the genetic architecture of Ucrit, with evidence from heritability estimates, genome-wide association studies, and transcriptomic analyses pointing to a polygenic basis and a central role of energy metabolism and mitochondrial function. We further discuss the applications of Ucrit in aquaculture and fisheries management, including selective breeding, exercise training, fish passage design, and stock enhancement. Finally, we outline future research directions, emphasizing the need to establish standardized measurement frameworks, develop high-throughput phenotyping technologies integrated with artificial intelligence, and achieve multi-omics integration. Advancing these approaches will deepen our understanding of swimming performance and facilitate the development of more efficient and sustainable aquaculture, while promoting continued innovation in fisheries science.

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Green total factor productivity and ocean health: a global panel analysis of institutional, environmental and economic drivers

Published 2 November 2026 Science Leave a Comment
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The deterioration of ocean health has become a critical global challenge due to increasing pressures from economic activities, environmental degradation, and institutional weaknesses. This study examines the impacts of economic growth, capture fisheries production, greenhouse gas emissions, and government effectiveness on ocean health at the global level during the period 2012–2022, using the Ocean Health Index (OHI) as a multidimensional measure of marine sustainability. A quantitative research design based on panel data analysis is employed using secondary data collected from the Ocean Health Index database, the World Bank, and Our World in Data. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, panel unit root tests, multicollinearity diagnostics, and panel model specification tests are conducted, followed by fixed-effects estimation with country-clustered standard errors. An environmentally extended Solow-residual method is then employed to calculate the Green Total Factor Productivity (GTFP) growth and added to an extended model of ocean health. The results indicate that there is a positive and significant relationship between economic growth and ocean health, and a negative and significant relationship between government effectiveness and ocean health. Ocean health is statistically significant and negatively associated with the growth of GTFP, while both capture fisheries production and GHGs are statistically insignificant. The study demonstrates that ocean health is a multidimensional socio-ecological phenomenon shaped by the interaction of economic, environmental, institutional factors and productivity related aspects. These findings contribute to the literature by integrating economic, environmental, institutional and productivity related dimensions to provide a broader understanding of the factors associated with ocean health across countries.

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