When it comes to studying how corals respond to increasing ocean temperatures as the climate warms, the corals are just part the puzzle.
“If we don’t look at the algae that live in symbiosis with the corals, we’re really only seeing half of the picture, maybe less,” said Ph.D. student Mickey DeSalvo.
In warmer water, algae living in corals can die. The corals expel the algae, causing a bleaching effect.
To get a good handle on the physiology of the algae, DeSalvo needed to collaborate with Professor Roberto Iglesias-Prieto at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Iglesias-Prieto has tools for measuring algal health that DeSalvo knew would complement the molecular analysis tools he has in the lab of Professor Mónica Medina at UC Merced.
He found his chance to build that collaboration with a $12,000 UC MEXUS dissertation research grant supporting his work with Iglesias-Prieto in Puerto Morelos, a small town south of Cancun on the Yucatan Peninsula.
DeSalvo collected coral fragments, analyzed them for algal health before and during thermal stress using Iglesias-Prieto’s tools, then froze them and brought them home to determine how corals from different locations respond to thermal stress at the level of gene expression.
So far, he’s found surprising results about resistance to warming temperatures at different depths in the ocean. Algae living in corals near the surface and near the ocean floor have a more difficult time adapting to warmer temperatures than the algae that live in corals in between. The molecular biology DeSalvo is working on now may reveal why.
DeSalvo focused on marine biology as an undergrad at UC Berkeley. He then learned molecular biology techniques as a research associate at UC San Francisco before deciding to explore the molecular foundations of coral health. He came to UC Merced in 2005 to pursue his doctorate with Medina.
He said UC Merced students and professors should get acquainted with the UC MEXUS grant program.
“They like to allocate funds among all 10 UC campuses, so applicants from UC Merced have a good chance of receiving funding,” he said. “The important thing is to remember that it’s not just about a free research trip – the program is meant to encourage collaboration with Mexican researchers.”
DeSalvo’s project does that effectively – bringing knowledge and skill from south of the border to bear on his important work about how the oceans may weather global warming.
