iAQUA promotes an understanding of the possible effects of climate change on air-breathing fish in tropical aquaculture. Due to the major differences in cardiovascular and branchial layouts between water- and air-breathing fish, it is neither possible nor appropriate to transfer knowledge from water breathing species such as salmon and trout.
December 5-16, College of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Can Tho University, Vietnam
An innovative graduate level course taught by an international team of experts in comparative physiology. The tropical environment is frequently both deeply hypoxic and hypercapnic, which on an evolutionary scale has led to numerous appearances of vertebrate air-breathing. In addition, waterlogged tropical delta regions often house acid sulphate soils with very low pH (<3.5) waterways at the onset of the rainy-season. This course will examine the integrative physiology of air-breathing fish with particular focus on the challenges to acid and ion regulation encountered in the transition from aquatic to terrestrial habitats. The course will run from Monday, December 5 until Friday December 16, 2016 at the College of Agriculture and Fisheries, Can Tho University, Can Tho, Vietnam, and consist of lectures (see topic list below) and mini-projects. A wide variety of local fish species will be available for the projects including some living at below pH 4. Enrollment on the course will be limited to a maximum of 24 students. Organizers anticipate some level of travel support for all international students accepted into the course.
Biophysical properties of air and water, climate and the evolution of air breathing, environmental hypercapnia and global change, respiratory gas exchange and ventilatory control, circulatory “design”, blood gas transport, acid-base balance, ion balance and ammonia excretion.
Students will learn basic research techniques and analytical approaches through the projects. Available techniques include basic surgical techniques including catheterization, measurements of blood flow and ventilation, metabolic rate measurements using closed and flow through respirometry, blood gas measurements, and analysis of ions, pH and ammonia. A variety of fish species will be available including air-breathers and fish adapted to very low pH.
Mark Bayley, PhD. Zoophysiology, Department of Biosciences, Aarhus University, Denmark
Colin Brauner, PhD. Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Canada
James Hicks, PhD. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Irvine, USA
Atsushi Ishimatsu, PhD. Institute for East China Sea Research, Nagasaki University, Japan
Frank Bo Jensen, DSc. Department of Biology, University of Southern Denmark
Sjannie Lefevre, PhD. Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Norway
Bill Milsom, PhD. Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Canada
Göran Nilsson, PhD. Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Norway
Do Thi Thanh Huong, PhD. College of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Can Tho University, Vietnam
Nguyen Thanh Phuong, PhD. College of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Can Tho University, Vietnam
Tobias Wang, PhD. Zoophysiology, Department of Biosciences, Aarhus University, Denmark
Send application (cover letter indicating why the course will be relevant to your graduate work and CV) to Dr. Mark Bayley mark.bayley@bios.au.dk
10. Ern, R., Huong, D.T.T., Phuong, N. T., Madsen, P.T., Wang, T., & Bayley, M. (2015). Some like it hot: Thermal tolerance and oxygen supply capacity in two eurythermal crustaceans. Scientific Reports. 5, 10743; DOi: 10.1038/srep10743
9.Damsgaard, C., Phuong, L. M., Jensen, F. B., Wang, T., & Bayley, M. (2015b). High affinity and temperature sensitivity of blood oxygen binding in Pangasianodon hypophthalmus due to lack of chloride-hemoglobin allosteric interaction. American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, ajpregu–00470.
8.Damsgaard, C., Dang, D. T., Van Thinh, P., Wang, T., & Bayley, M. (2015a). High capacity for extracellular acid-base regulation in the air-breathing fish Pangasianodon hypophthalmus. The Journal of Experimental Biology, jeb–117671.
