Understanding tradeoffs of rapid adaptation to environmental chemicals following chronic exposure is critical for ecological risk assessment. Atlantic killifish that reside in the Elizabeth River (ER), an estuary with significant PAH contamination from decades of creosote pollution, provide a model to study these energetic costs. These fish exhibit a PAH-adapted phenotype that has been associated with organismal-level bioenergetic shifts, including decreased aerobic scope and reduced thermal tolerance. We seek to understand the bioenergetic fitness of offspring from sites with a gradient of PAH pollution and the later-life mitochondrial effects of early life PAH exposure. These data provide important risk assessment data for Atlantic killifish, an integral species in the ER ecosystem.
About the Speaker: Dr. Lindsay Jasperse is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University, under the guidance of Dr. Richard Di Giulio. Dr. Jasperse received a Bachelor of Science degree in Molecular & Cell Biology from the University of Connecticut in 2012. She received her PhD in Pathobiology from the University of Connecticut in 2019. Her graduate research centered on the immunological, developmental, and reproductive impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on Gulf of Mexico aquatic species. While at Duke, Dr. Jasperse has been studying the impacts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure on zebrafish and Atlantic killifish, with a particular focus on mitochondrial bioenergetics.
Thursday, January 19, 2023, 12:00-1:15 pm Eastern
Field Auditorium Room 1112, Grainger Hall (9 Circuit Dr, Durham, NC)
Masks are optional for in-person attendees. Please stay home if you aren’t feeling well and join us via livestream instead (see below).