Graduation Date
Spring 2026
Document Type
Thesis
Program
Master of Science degree with a major in Biology
Committee Chair Name
Dr. Paul E. Bourdeau
Committee Chair Affiliation
Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff
Second Committee Member Name
Dr. Kaho Tisthammer
Second Committee Member Affiliation
Community Member or Outside Professional
Third Committee Member Name
Dr. Christine J. Cass
Third Committee Member Affiliation
Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff
Fourth Committee Member Name
Dr. Jeffrey Abell
Fourth Committee Member Affiliation
Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff
Fifth Committee Member Name
Dr. Eric P. Bjorkstedt
Fifth Committee Member Affiliation
Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff
Keywords
Coral, Ocean acidification, Proteomics, Adaptation, Resilience, California, Climate change, Alaska, Washington, California current, Upwelling, pH
Subject Categories
Biology
Abstract
In the face of a rapidly changing climate, assessing organismal responses to future stressors in the context of current, natural exposure to stress could provide key insights to understanding marine ecosystem resilience. I used Balanophyllia elegans, a cold-water, solitary, azooxanthellate coral as a model to better understand how varying oceanographic conditions across its geographic range have shaped its ability to tolerate and potentially adapt to current and future ocean acidification conditions. I collected B. elegans individuals from four sites across 2,500km of their range and subjected them to two pH treatments to investigate site-specific protein expression in response to low pH. Using proteomic analysis, I found that corals from each site responded differentially to low pH, mainly through changes in regulation of metabolism, calcification, and homeostasis-related proteins. Additionally, health condition varied significantly between sites after exposure to low pH, providing further evidence of site-specific responses. These results demonstrate site-specific variation in responses and tolerance to low pH, a pattern that could inform future investigations into environmental-driven adaptive expression. Such site-specific responses highlight the importance of multi-source studies for predicting a species' ability to navigate future climate changes.
Citation Style
APA
Recommended Citation
Richmond, Keana A., "Geographic variation in proteomic responses to ocean acidification in a cold-water coral (Balanophyllia elegans)" (2026). Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects. 2552.
https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/etd/2552
Included in
Bioinformatics Commons, Cellular and Molecular Physiology Commons, Integrative Biology Commons, Marine Biology Commons, Oceanography Commons, Population Biology Commons