Conservações e áreas afins - Comunicações orais

Anthropogenic pollutants threaten the health of mangrove environments. Mangroves are vital ecosystems that provide ecological and monetary services. The mangrove crab Ucides cordatus, a key biological monitor, will be used as a tool to diagnose and classify anthropogenic impacts on its mangrove environment and on its physiological, biochemical and genetic responses due to the crab’s intimate proximity with mangrove sediments. An integrative approach will be proposed to evaluate physiological and genetic responses to metal contaminants in crabs from two differentially impacted mangrove areas: (i) a protected environment within the Juréia-Itatins Ecological Station; and (ii) an unprotected environment from the São Vicente/Cubatão municipality, both on the coast of São Paulo State. Hepatopancreas and gill tissues will be dissected for physiological evaluation. Oxidative stress activity and protein concentration will be measured spectrophotometrically and enzyme activity will be calculated using relative molar coefficients. Muscle tissue will be utilized for DNA and RNA extraction. Next generation sequencing will be employed for differential analysis of population genetics, genetic structure, gene regulation and gene expression responses. The transposition of crabs from the Juréia-Itatins mangrove system to a controlled medium reproducing the São Vicente/Cubatão mangrove environment will allow the evaluation of stress responses like oxidative enzyme activity and differentially expressed genes. Positive correlation tests between degree of contamination and genetic parameters and physiological responses in U. cordatus will establish an effect of anthropogenic pollutants. Such information will provide quantifiable measures of pollutant effects that should be instrumental in improving environmental risk assessment and in establishing conservation strategies. Our objectives, approach, methodology and possible preliminary results will be presented.