Adam T Downie- PhD
- PostDoc Position at Queensland University of Technology
Adam T Downie
- PhD
- PostDoc Position at Queensland University of Technology
Reef fish physiology and development, swimming performance of fishes, impact of UV on reef fish ontogeny
About
20
Publications
5,172
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294
Citations
Introduction
I have a broad interest in fish eco-physiology, exercise physiology and evolution. I worked on sturgeon osmoregulation, substrate preference and swimming physiology during my undergraduate degree at the University of New Brunswick (Saint John) in Canada. My PhD research will focus on the exercise physiology, aerobic metabolism and ontogeny of larval coral reef fishes, as well as the evolution of reef fish swim physiology using phylogeny.
Current institution
Additional affiliations
February 2017 - present
January 2016 - November 2016
May 2015 - December 2015
Education
September 2011 - April 2015
University of New Brunswick, Saint John, Canada
Field of study
- Marine Biology
Publications
Publications (20)
Tropicalization, the phenomena by which tropical organisms are extending their distributions poleward into temperate latitudes in response to increasing temperatures and strengthening boundary currents, is occurring globally. Vagrant tropical species have large ecological and economic ramifications for the temperate habitats they invade. However, n...
The mechanosensory (lateral line) and electrosensory systems are two important non-visual sensory modalities, especially in low light environments. Despite their importance, these sensory systems have received little attention in deepwater chondrichthyans. Here, we describe the morphological organisation of the peripheral lateral line and electrose...
Estuaries provide critical ecosystem services, and yet are increasingly under threat from urbanization. Non-invasive approaches to monitor biodiversity resident to or migrating through estuaries is critical to evaluate the holistic health of these ecosystems, often based entirely on water quality. In this study we compared tree of life metabarcodin...
Metamorphosis is a critical aspect of coral reef fish ecology. This developmental milestone marks changes in form and function that permit successful transition of pelagic larvae to the demersal lifestyle on coral reefs. However, we know very little about the physiological changes that occur during this period, specifically potential changes in ene...
Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is a pervasive factor that has shaped the evolution of life on Earth. Ambient levels of UVR mediate key biological functions but can also cause severe lethal and sublethal effects in a wide range of organisms. Furthermore, UVR is a powerful modulator of the effects of other environmental factors on organismal physiology,...
Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) from the sun is a natural daytime stressor for vertebrates in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. UVR effects on the physiology of vertebrates manifest at the cellular level, but have bottom‐up effects at the tissue level and on whole‐animal performance and behaviours. Climate change and habitat loss (i.e. loss of s...
Connectivity of coral reef fish populations relies on successful dispersal of a pelagic larval phase. Pelagic larvae must exhibit high swimming abilities to overcome ocean and reef currents, but once settling onto the reef, larvae transition to endure habitats that become hypoxic at night. Therefore, coral reef fish larvae must rapidly and dramatic...
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Coral reef ecosystems are currently under unprecedented stress due to anthropogenic induced climate change. Such stress causes coral habitats to degrade, which has been found to negatively impact the behaviour of some reef fishes. However, it is unknown whether the same chemical stresses from degraded habitats that impacts fish behaviour also impac...
Latitude and body size are generally considered key drivers of swimming performance for larval marine fishes, but evidence suggests that evolutionary relationships and habitat may also be important. We used a comparative phylogenetic framework, data synthesis and case study approach to investigate how swimming performance differs among larvae of fi...
In fishes, swimming performance is considered an important metric to measure fitness, dispersal and migratory abilities. The swimming performance of individual larval fishes is often integrated into models to make inferences on how environmental parameters affect population-level dynamics (e.g. connectivity). However, little information exists rega...
Marine ectotherms are often sensitive to thermal stress, and certain life stages can be particularly vulnerable (e.g., larvae or spawners). In this study, we investigated the critical thermal maxima (CTmax) of larval and early juvenile life stages of three tropical marine fishes (Acanthochromis polyacanthus, Amphiprion melanopus, and Lates calcarif...
The larval phase of marine teleost fishes is characterized by important morphological and physiological modifications. Many of these modifications improve the larvae’s ability to swim, which satisfies a suite of crucial biological and ecological functions. Indeed, larval fish swimming performance has been considered a good proxy for overall conditi...
Juvenile shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum Lesueur, 1818) were exposed to seawater and freshwater for 24 h to evaluate the osmoregulatory capabilities over a seasonal temperature gradient (5, 10, 15, 20 °C). Additionally, juveniles were exposed to 5 °C seawater and freshwater over 72 h to evaluate survival and osmoregulatory capacity under...
The most utilized method to measure swimming performance of fishes has been the critical swimming speed (UCrit) test. In this test, the fish is forced to swim against an incrementally increasing flow of water until fatigue. Before the water velocity is increased, the fish swims at the water velocity for a specific, prearranged time interval. The ma...
Critical swimming speed (UCrit) is a standard test to measure sustained swimming capabilities of fish species, however, much of this research is focused on pelagic fish or popular game fish. Recently, more research is emerging on the swimming capabilities of sturgeons, mainly due to their conservation status. Substrate preference has been examined...
One-year-old shortnose sturgeons (Acipenser brevirostrum LeSueur, 1818) were exposed to seawater (32 ppt) and brackish water (16 and 24 ppt) for 12, 24, 48, and 72 h and % body mass loss, plasma ions, energy metabolites, and oxygen-carrying variables were measured to evaluate survival and the physiological response to the acute salinity challenges....
Questions
Question (1)
Hi!
I am investigating the muscle development of larval coral reef fishes over early ontogeny. I have all my samples snap frozen (liquid nitrogen cooled isopentane), and my OCT blocks are currently stored at -80C. I would like to use succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) histochemistry to stain the cryosections to look at oxidative capacity of the muscle fibers. My questions are regarding storage of sections and batch staining:
1. We estimate we can section 20-30 samples per day. Can the cryo sections be stored at -20C or -80C for later histochemistry, without damage to the tissue?
2. What is the viability/storage of the SDH stain? Our stain is made of 0.2M Tris buffer (pH= 7.4), sodium succinate, Nitrotetrazolium blue and phenazine methosulfate (as per our histologists formula). Can we stain the slides in batches or should they be done all at once (i.e., the same day they have been sectioned)? If they can be done in batches, any recommendations for how to store the stain/its shelf life?
Thanks!
