Proteomic profiling unveils compensatory physiological mechanisms of an annelid living across a natural persistent deoxygenation gradient.

Dissolved oxygen is a major environmental driver in aquatic environments, and its decline in the global ocean over recent decades threatens marine fauna, particularly benthic invertebrates. These organisms, often sessile or sedentary, cannot escape persistent environmental hypoxia and must rely on the adjustment of physiological mechanisms, such as energy metabolism and cell functioning pathways, underpinning their ability to cope with these challenging conditions. However, the molecular bases of such mechanisms, particularly under in situ conditions, are yet poorly understood.

Ocean deoxygenation caused non-linear responses in the structure and functioning of benthic ecosystems.

The O content of the global ocean has been declining progressively over the past decades, mainly because of human activities and global warming. Nevertheless, how long-term deoxygenation affects macrobenthic communities, sediment biogeochemistry and their mutual feedback remains poorly understood. Here, we evaluate the response of the benthic assemblages and biogeochemical functioning to decreasing O concentrations along the persistent bottom-water dissolved O gradient of the Estuary and Gulf of St.

Benthos response to nutrient enrichment and functional consequences in coastal ecosystems.

As land use intensifies, many coastal waters are becoming enriched with otherwise limiting nutrients, leading to eutrophication. While the extreme effects of eutrophication on benthic communities are well documented, there is still a lack of knowledge about how nutrient enrichment alters biogeochemical interactions occurring at the sediment-water interface. Using ex-situ experiments, this study explores the consequences of nutrient enrichment on sediment characteristics, macrofauna community and benthic fluxes.

Parasitism in ecosystem engineer species: A key factor controlling marine ecosystem functioning.

Although parasites represent a substantial part of marine communities' biomass and diversity, their influence on ecosystem functioning, especially via the modification of host behaviour, remains largely unknown. Here, we explored the effects of the bopyrid ectoparasite Gyge branchialis on the engineering activities of the thalassinid crustacean Upogebia pusilla and the cascading effects on intertidal ecosystem processes (e.g.