A coordinated Scandinavian Marine network: MarEGene

1
A coordinated Scandinavian Marine
networkMarEGene
Nils Chr. Stenseth Research Professor Centre
for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis
(CEES)Department of Biology, University of Oslo,
P.O. Box 1050 Blindern, N-0316 Oslo,
Norway E-mail ltn.c.stenseth_at_bio.uio.nogt Senior
Scientist II at Institute for Marine Research
The Mar signifying the Ocean (Mare in
latin), the E signifying Environment, Ecology
and Evolution, while Gene signifies the
profound new possibilities provided by the new
technologies of genomics and bioinformatics.
2
MarEGene Marine Ecology and GenomicsIntegrated
study of ecology and evolution of marine life in
the Skagerrak and Kattegat
Participants (chaired by Prof. Nils Chr.
Stenseth)         University of Oslo,
No         University of Gothenburg,
Swe         University of Aarhus, Dk        
University of Copenhagen, Dk        
Kristineberg Marine Research Station,
Swe         Tjärnö Marine Biological Laboratory,
Swe         Danish Institute for Fisheries
Research (DIFRES), Dk         Institute of
Marine Research (IMR), Flødevigen, No        
Danish Meteorological Institute, Dk
3
A brief history of MarEGene

• Early Fall 2002 Initiated by Medcoast
  (established by the Universities of Oslo and
  Gothenburg)
• Mid Fall 2002 We approached initiatives towards
  Kristineberg, Tjärnö (initially), later extended
  to increase geographic coverage and range of
  institutions
• Early Spring 2003 Developed an application for
  EU
• September 12 2003 MarEGene presented to NSF (US)
• December 2003 meeting with KVA, Sweden

4
MarEGene Vision

• Merging Ecology and Genomics
• Climatic and anthropogenic changes affecting the
  dynamics and the genetics within species and
  biodiversity within the Skagerrak/Kattegat
  ecosystem

5
MarEGene Goal

• Overall objective of the MarEGene
• Create a marine-biological joint effort for the
  Skagerrak and Kattegat area
• Create an internationally leading
  platform/network for marine biology
• Create a platform for cooperation between
  academic (such as UiO, GU etc) and private
  institutions (including private research) for
  funding of research

6

7
MarEGene institutions

• A1 University of Oslo (UoO)
• Molecular ecology and population Genetics Lab
• Statistics and method lab Algal lab
• Research vessels. Mesocosm (co-operation with
  NIVA)
• A2 University of Gothenburg (GU)
• Tjärnö Marine Biological Laboratory (TMBL)
  Chemical ecology lab., genetics laboratory,
  biohydrodynamics lab. Research vessels Nereus
  and Lophelia (Coastal areas)
• Gothenburg Sahlgrenska virus prevalence and
  dynamics

• A3 University of Århus (UoAa)
• Genetics lab, SEM, Marine Biological Fields
  station
• Research vessel Genetica II (For coastal
  areas)
• A4 Institute of Marine Research, Flødevigen
  (IMR)
• Algae lab, Experimental Facilities, Pop. Genetics
  Lab
• Research vessel G.M. Dannevig (Ocean going)

8
MarEGene institutions

• A5 Danish Institute of Fisheries Research
  (DIFRES)
• Silkeborg Fish population genetics laboratory
  (DNA-facilities and Population Genetics research
  group)
• Hirtshals/Charlottenlund Fish culture
  facilities, Fish tagging facilities, Experimental
  setups for environmental conditions Research
  vessel Dana (Ocean going) and Havfisken
  (Coastal areas)
• A6 University of Copenhagen
• (HAB-lab) Microalgae facilities.

• A7 Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI)
• Circulation pattern modeling lab
• A8 Kristineberg Marine Research Station (KMRS)
• Genomics competence
• Others
• Agder University College
• Genomics competence, virus competence

9
MarEGene gt the sum of the involved scientists and
institutions
10
UoO
Tjärnö
IMR, Flødevigen
KMRS
GU
DIFRES, Hirtshals
UoAa
UoCop/DIFRES
11
MarEGene activities

• Model system of environmental change in the
  Skagerrak and Kattegat
• Develop statistical and biological models for
  environmental change in the Skagerrak and
  Kattegat
• Long-term ecological and time series coordination
  
• Coordinated effort to make time series available
• Skattegat Centre of Marine Biodiversity
• Aim To be the best understood system in terms of
  biodiversity
• Biodiversity at all levels From genes to
  ecosystems

12
MarEGene Joint Research Activities

• Harmful oceanic organisms (Algae blooms,
• human viruses etc.)
• toxin production - genetic factors
• Inshore vs. offshore
• Human viruses
• Human health

13
Torsk i Skagerrak, Kattegat, Østersjøen og
Nordsjøen
G.O.Sars, 1865
14
Population dynamics of cod (Gadus morhua)
15
Gunder M. Dannevig (1841 1911)

• Dannevig var bekymret over at torskebestanden på
  Sørlandet
• Ifølge ham og andre gikk bestanden(e) av torsk
  langs Sørlandskysten ned fra et år til et annet
• Noe den syntes å ha gjort i flere år

16

• Gunder M. Dannevig satte seg som mål å forbedre
  torskebestandene langs Sørlandskysten

• Basert på studier,
• hva han så på en utstilling i London,
• og lærte i Nord-Amerika, og
• tenkte han at torske-larver kunne ales opp og
  settes ut .

17
..derfor grunnla han Flødevigen utklækningsanstalt
Flødevigen utklækningsanstalt (1922)
18
Hvert år ble i gjennomsnitt vel 17 millioner
larver satt ut i hver fjord (omtrent 20 fjorder)
i årene 1895-1970
19
Johan Hjort (1869-1948) betvilte at slik
utsetting ville ha noen effekt

• ikke fjordbaserte torskestammer
• larvene som ble satt ut, ville uansett
  forsvinne ut i åpent hav (og dessuten har de høy
  mortalitet)

20
Påstand mot påstand praktikeren Gunder Dannevig
mot den marinbiologiske kjempen, Johan Hjort.
Hvem hadde rett? Gunder Dannevig hadde
pågangsmot .. . og overtalte i 1903 Stortinget
til å bevilge midler til regelmessige nottrekk på
faste stasjoner hver september/oktober for å
teste effekten av larve-utsettingen.
21
Strandnot-trekk anno 1919
22
Samplingområde for Flødevigen dataene (pr. idag)
23
Bestandsdynamikk
24

• This is our focus

25
Ecological modelling

• Stenseth, N. C., Bjørnstad, O. N., Falck, W.,
  Fromentin, J.-M., Gjøsæter, J. Gray, J. S.
  (1999). Dynamics of coastal cod populations
  intra- and intercohort density dependence and
  stochastic processes. Proceedings of the Royal
  Society of London, B 266, 1645-1654.
• Chan, K.-S., Stenseth, N. C., Kittilsen, M.,
  Gjøsæter, J., Lekve, K., Smith, T., Tveite, S.
  Danielssen, D. (2003). Assessing the
  effectiveness of releasing cod larvae for stock
  improvement with monitoring data. Ecological
  Applications 13, 322.
• Chan, K.-S., Stenseth, N. C., Lekve, K.
  Gjøsæter, J. (2003). Modeling pulse disturbance
  impact on cod population dynamics the 1988 algal
  bloom of Skagerrak, Norway. Ecological Monographs
  73, 151-171.

26
Sampling Area for the Flødevigen data
27
Within cohort interactions Density dependence

• Stenseth, N. C., Bjørnstad, O. N., Falck, W.,
  Fromentin, J.-M., Gjøsæter, J. Gray, J. S.
  (1999). Dynamics of coastal cod populations
  intra- and intercohort density dependence and
  stochastic processes. Proceedings of the Royal
  Society of London, B 266, 1645-1654.

Matematisk modell Xt ?t exp(?t) Yt Xt-1 exp(
? ln Xt-1) exp ( ? ln(Yt-1)) ?t Yt-1
exp(?) der Xt er antall 0-gruppe torsk, Yt er
antall 1-gruppe torsk og ?t er gytemoden
torsk. ?t er en sekvens av normalfordelte
tilfeldige variable. ? og ? er positive
konstanter, og ? er en negativ konstant.
Between cohort interaction Competition/Canniba
lism
28
Chan, K.-S., Stenseth, N. C., Kittilsen, M.,
Gjøsæter, J., Lekve, K., Smith, T., Tveite, S.
Danielssen, D. (2003). Assessing the
effectiveness of releasing cod larvae for stock
improvement with monitoring data. Ecological
Applications 13, 322. Chan, K.-S., Stenseth, N.
C., Lekve, K. Gjøsæter, J. (2003). Modeling
pulse disturbance impact on cod population
dynamics the 1988 algal bloom of Skagerrak,
Norway. Ecological Monographs 73, 151-171.
29
Hvert år ble i gjennomsnitt vel 17 millioner
larver satt ut i hver fjord (omtrent 20 fjorder)
i årene 1895-1970
30
Hjort-Dannevig kontroversen
Smith, T.D., Gjøsæter, J., Stenseth, N.C.,
Kittilsen, M.O., Danielssen, D.S. Tveite, S.
2002 A Century of Manipulating Recruitment in
Coastal Cod Populations The Flødevigen
Experience. ICES Marine Science Symposia 215,
402-415.
31
Alge-oppblomstringen i 1988
32
Alge-oppblomstringen i 1988
Large quantities of dead dog whelk, Nucella
lapillus, were observed along the beaches of the
Norwegian Skagerrak coast during a research
cruise 6-9 June 1988. These were found at
Jomfruland Photo Turid Winther-Larsen.
33
Oceanographic features in the Skagerrak
From Aure et al. 2000. Havets miljø 2000.
FiskenHav, Særnr. 22000

• Dominated by large-scale current system

34
Population genetic studies

• Knutsen, H., Jorde, P. E., André, C. and
  Stenseth, N. C. 2003. Fine-scaled geographic
  population structuring in a highly mobile marine
  species the Atlantic cod. Molecular Ecology 12,
  385-394.
• Knutsen, H., André, C. Jorde, P. E., Skogen, M.
  D., Thuróczy, E. and Stenseth, N. C. 2004. Influx
  of North Sea cod larva into the Skagerrak coast.
  Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, B (in
  press)
• Knutsen, H., Jorde, P. E. and Stenseth, N. C.
  Population structuring of coastal cod (Gadus
  morhua L.) and the geographic extent of local
  populations (in review)
• André, C., Knutsen, H., Jorde, P. E. and
  Stenseth, N. C. A temporally persistent contact
  zone between Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua)
  populations across an environmental gradient (in
  review)
•  

35
Fine-scaled genetic structure in coastal cod

• About 100 inds from each site using 10
• polymorphic microsattelite loci

• Significant genetic structure among coastal cod
• populations located only 60 km apart
• Average FST 0.0023 P lt 0.001

Knutsen et al. 2003
36
How can fine-scaled structure be explained?

• Coastal cod highly stationary (tagging and
  acoustic studies)
• Distribution of eggs higher inside fjords in
  deep water basins

37
Coastal Atlantic cod - Ultrasonic transmitters

• 13 individuals gt 50 cm tagged and followed
• continuously for 16 months
• Highly stationary (move little over the 16
  months
• utilizing only 5 of the availabel area in the
  fjord)
• Individual cod spend time in spesific areas
  within
• the fjord

1 km
Sigurd Espeland and Ailin Gundersen
Ultrasonic transmitters Movement on the
Norwegian Skagerrak coast Espeland et al. (2002)
38
A platform for genomics

• Monitoring data
• (Since 1919 the Norwegian Skagerrak coast has
  been sampled by beach seine for more than 100
  stations each autumn)

• Population genetics
• Several of the groups (HI/Flødevigen, UiO,
  Tjärnö) extensive experience in population
  genetics

39
Genetics and ecology of cod in Skagerrak the
importance of sea-currents

• Ecology
• Monitoring larvae population of cod since 1919
• North Sea spawning stock combined with strength
  of sea current sea influence abundance of of
  coastal cod larvae

• Genetics
• In 2001, juvenile Norwegian Skagerrak coastal
  cod resembled genetically North Sea spawning cod
• Not so in 2000
• Strong current into Skagerrak in 2001

Skagerrak
North Sea
Knutsen et al., in review Stenseth et al., in
review
40
Dannevigs Big Experiment holds a key to
answering crucial questions relating to modern
aquaculture of cod

• The Dannevig-Hjort controversy in the 1890s and
  1900s
• Dannevig was right
• Dannevigs release had an ecological effect in
  some fjords
• There is genetic structuring between fjords

• How does larvae release affect populations
  genetically (naturally or artifically)?
• Inportant issues for aquaculture (opening for
  this in the northern part of the country cf. the
  report by Pia Kupka (HI))
• Need urgently answers

• The Skagerrak-system is a unique model for
  tackling such questions

41
Ecological genomics Genomics for the future

• Sea urchin, Ciona and Oikopleura complete genome
  sequence information
• Sebrafish Genetic sequence information is
  available.
• The major fish species in the Skagerrak/Kattegat
  ecosystems (extensive partial knowledge of, e.g.,
  cod).

Ciona intestinalis is common in the
Skagerrak/Kattegat and is almost completely
sequenced.
42
Phenotypic plasticity in natural populations of
Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) along a salinity
gradient a genome-wide perspective

• Sampling of cod along a salinity gradient for
  molecular genetic analyses and for experimental
  studies.
• Specimens at different developmental stages will
  be sampled.

43
Study of Genotype-Environment interactions

• Complex traits with unknown genetic basis
• Molecular genetics
• screening of cDNA microarrays to study
  environmental impact on gene expression patterns
• Detection of salinity responsive genes
• Sequencing of cDNAs, their genomic counterparts
  and adjacent control regions

• Experimental studies (to be done in Flødevigen)
• rearing and breeding studies of live-captured cod
  kept under controlled conditions (different
  levels of salinity) in order to study
  phenotypic-plasticity and heritability

44
What is needed to get MarEGene flying?
Funding

• EU funding
• NorFA and other Nordic funding (Nordic Marine
  Academy)
• National funding (Denmark, Norway and Sweden)
• Wallenberg foundation and similar sources
• International funding (NSF)

45
Et Post Script Barentshavet
46
Barentshavet
Europas spiskammers
Rome
47
The interplay between climatic and biotic factors
in the Barents Sea
cod
capelin
young herring
The dynamics of these direct/indirect effects is
difficult - but important - to understand
48
Fra HIs bestands-datatil en model for
torks-lodde systemet i Barensthavet
49
Effekten av klimafluktuasjoner på torsk
50
Effekt av mulige oljeutslipp i Barentshavet

• Loss of 20-50 of cod recruits ? 50-100 000 t
  decrease of cod spawning stock ca. 7 years later
• Loss of 80 of capelin recruits ? 30-150 000 t
  decrease of cod spawning stock
• 2 decrease in cod survival ? 100 000 t decrease
  of cod spawning stock

51
Konklusjoner MarEGene i et videre perspektiv

• MarEGene er en forsknings-plattform som gjør oss
  attraktive i en internasjonal sammenheng
• Skagerrak og tilhørende havområder er et godt
  modell-system for å studere effekter av
  miljøendringer og menneskelig påvirkning
• Økologiske og genetiske studier på torsk i
  Skagerrak er av direkte relevans for å vurdere
  effekter av havbruksnæringen (torsk)
• Vi kan nå sammenligne populasjonsstruktur i en
  kyststrekning hvor kunstig har funnet sted
  (Skagerrak) med et område på (Vestlandet eller
  Nord Norge) der oppdrett (med fare for rømning)

52
Konklusjoner MarEGene i et videre perspektiv II

• Otolitt-prøver fra før utsettingene (dvs. tidlig
  1900-tallet med dagens genetiske struktur vil gi
  verdifull her innsikt
• UiO-HI samarbeidet bl.a. innen MarEGene har
  gitt oss en plattform for mer generelt arbeid
• Genomics på torsk (viktig kunnskap for å
  forberede oss på evt. Klimaendringer)
• Klimaeffekter i nordområdene
• Vurdering av effekten av evt. olje-utslipp

53
UoO
Tjärnö
IMR, Flødevigen
KMRS
GU
DIFRES, Hirtshals
UoAa
UoCop/DIFRES