It sounds remarkable but scientists have discovered that corals respond to a lack of oxygen in a similar way to humans and other animals. Unfortunately the researchers were led to their path of discovery because of concern that declining ocean oxygen stores are adding an additional environmental stress to already highly vulnerable coral reef ecosystems.
Continued ocean deoxygenation will play a critical role in shaping the future of our reefs. Credit Morgan Bennett-Smith
The research provides insight into how some corals respond to low environmental oxygen levels and how this information could guide future coral management, including genetic modification and selection
A unique stress experiment reveals key gene response
A unique deoxygenation-reoxygenation stress experiment has given researchers from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), University of Konstanz and University of Copenhagen an understanding of how corals manage deoxygenation stress and the key genes that likely drive varied stress susceptibility that commonly results in coral bleaching.
The study, published in Global Change Biology discovered that, like other animals and humans, corals have a similar, sophisticated response to low oxygen levels, or hypoxia. The response is commonly activated during oxygen-deprived exercise and cancer growth in humans.
Continue reading in the UTS Newsroom: Coral’s last gasp?