03078nas a2200241 4500008004100000022001300041245011000054210006900164260001200233300001100245490000800256520229200264653002502556653002602581653002802607653002502635653002702660653001802687100001302705700002502718700002102743856007202764 2024 eng d a0929139300aAn Antarctic worm and its soil ecosystem: A review of an emerging research program in ecological genomics0 aAntarctic worm and its soil ecosystem A review of an emerging re c01/2024 a1051100 v1933 a

Relationships between the evolution of species and their ecosystems can be difficult to accurately assess due to the high number of confounding biological variables (e.g., biotic interactions among community members and the resulting complex relationships between genetic pathways and organism phenotypes). Thus, progress in ecological genomics by making inferences about fundamental ecological patterns and processes is hampered by high biodiversity and subsequent complex biotic interactions. Study systems that are naturally low in biological and ecological complexity, and strongly structured by abiotic drivers, can serve as models for bridging the gap between controlled mesocosm experiments and natural ecosystems. The terrestrial ecosystems of the Antarctic dry valleys have low biodiversity and constrained ecological complexity, primarily because ecological communities are so strongly shaped by physical, rather than biological, factors. The harsh constraints of the physical environment on organismal evolution and the structure of ecological communities make this an optimal natural system for disentangling the influence of specific environmental parameters on genotype/phenotype and gene by environment interactions. This work reviews the biology, evolution, and ecology of an emerging model organism, the free-living nematode Plectus murrayi, in a model ecosystem, the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs) of Antarctica. In the MDVs, habitat suitability, including nutrient availability, has been shown to drive organismal (nematode) life history evolution, including growth and reproduction, primarily by way of changes in the expression of developmental genes. Changes in growth rates and reproductive schedules are accomplished primarily through alterations of nuclear rRNA gene copy number. The predicted and observed responses to natural experiments have been replicated in the laboratory, providing a synthesis of field observations and experimental evolution. Studying such natural model systems as this could fill several persistent knowledge gaps in our understanding of how genetic variation, genomic architecture, and gene regulation drive the genotype-phenotype paradigm, and the consequent effects of these drivers on ecosystem structure and functioning.

10aecological amplitude10aecological succession10aelemental stoichiometry10aextreme environments10alife history evolution10amodel systems1 aXue, Xia1 aThompson, Andrew, R.1 aAdams, Byron, J. uhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092913932300308603115nas a2200517 4500008004100000245008300041210006900124260001200193520161800205653001501823653002101838653002601859653001901885653001301904653001701917653002401934653002301958653001701981653001201998100001702010700001802027700002202045700002102067700002002088700003002108700002102138700002402159700002102183700002302204700001502227700001802242700002102260700002302281700002202304700002002326700002302346700002402369700001602393700002302409700002402432700002102456700001902477700001802496700002002514856006302534 2021 eng d00aAntarctic ecosystems in transition – life between stresses and opportunities0 aAntarctic ecosystems in transition life between stresses and opp c06/20213 a

Important findings from the second decade of the 21st century on the impact of environmental change on biological processes in the Antarctic were synthesised by 26 international experts. Ten key messages emerged that have stakeholder‐relevance and/or a high impact for the scientific community. They address (i) altered biogeochemical cycles, (ii) ocean acidification, (iii) climate change hotspots, (iv) unexpected dynamism in seabed‐dwelling populations, (v) spatial range shifts, (vi) adaptation and thermal resilience, (vii) sea ice related biological fluctuations, (viii) pollution, (ix) endangered terrestrial endemism and (x) the discovery of unknown habitats. Most Antarctic biotas are exposed to multiple stresses and considered vulnerable to environmental change due to narrow tolerance ranges, rapid change, projected circumpolar impacts, low potential for timely genetic adaptation, and migration barriers. Important ecosystem functions, such as primary production and energy transfer between trophic levels, have already changed, and biodiversity patterns have shifted. A confidence assessment of the degree of ‘scientific understanding’ revealed an intermediate level for most of the more detailed sub‐messages, indicating that process‐oriented research has been successful in the past decade. Additional efforts are necessary, however, to achieve the level of robustness in scientific knowledge that is required to inform protection measures of the unique Antarctic terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and their contributions to global biodiversity and ecosystem services.

10aadaptation10abenthic dynamism10abiogeochemical cycles10aclimate change10ainvasion10anew habitats10aocean acidification10aPrimary production10arange shifts10asea ice1 aGutt, Julian1 aIsla, Enrique1 aXavier, José, C.1 aAdams, Byron, J.1 aAhn, In‐Young1 aCheng, C.‐H., Christina1 aColesie, Claudia1 aCummings, Vonda, J.1 adi Prisco, Guido1 aGriffiths, Huw, J.1 aHawes, Ian1 aHogg, Ian, D.1 aMcIntyre, Trevor1 aMeiners, Klaus, M.1 aPearce, David, A.1 aPeck, Lloyd, S.1 aPiepenburg, Dieter1 aReisinger, Ryan, R.1 aSaba, Grace1 aSchloss, Irene, R.1 aSignori, Camila, N.1 aSmith, Craig, R.1 aVacchi, Marino1 aVerde, Cinzia1 aWall, Diana, H. uhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/brv.12679