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JPR Advance Access published online on September 21, 2006
Journal of Plankton Research, doi:10.1093/plankt/fbl049
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© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org
Received June 23, 2006
Accepted September 18, 2006

Article

Assessment of Calanus finmarchicus growth and dormancy using the aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (AARS) method

Lidia Yebra 1 *, Andrew G. Hirst 2, and Santiago Hernández-León 3

1 Plymouth Marine Laboratory, Prospect Place, Plymouth, PL1 3DH, UK; British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, UK
2 British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0ET, UK
3 Biological Oceanography Laboratory, Facultad de Ciencias del Mar, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017, Spain

* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
Lidia Yebra, E-mail: lyebra{at}icm.csic.es


  Abstract

We obtained growth rates of the copepod Calanus finmarchicus at different locations across the North Atlantic between May 1998 and June 2004. Animals were incubated for 2 to 9 days, and fed either with natural food assemblages or cultured algae. During this period, we measured both somatic weight-specific growth rates (measured as protein change) and aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (AARS) activity. We found a highly significant relationship between AARS activity and growth in protein content (R2= 0.55, p < 0.001). Significant AARS activity also occurred when growth was negative, the relationship predicting an AARS activity level <8.33 nmPPi·mg protein-1·h-1 when somatic growth is zero. This is because AARS activity is expected even when growth is negative, due to the continued protein turnover in the cells. The AARS method allowed for the first time the study of protein metabolism in overwintering Calanus finmarchicus. Our results showed that overwintering copepods had significantly lower values of AARS activity than non-diapausing animals (t = -3.51, p < 0.002). The AARS method opens the possibility to better understand physiology dynamics of deep water organisms (e.g. the beginning and end of diapause).

Communicating Editor: RP Harris


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