Ageing and Caloric Restriction in a Marine Planktonic Copepod.

ABSTRACT: Planktonic copepods are a key group in the marine pelagic ecosystem, linking primary production with upper trophic levels. Their abundance and population dynamics are constrained by the life history tradeoffs associated with resource availability, reproduction and predation pressure. The tradeoffs associated with the ageing process and its underlying biological mechanisms are, however, poorly known. Our study shows that ageing in copepods involves a deterioration of their vital rates and a rise in mortality associated with an increase in oxidative damage (lipid peroxidation); the activity of the cell-repair enzymatic machinery also increases with age. This increase in oxidative damage is associated with an increase in the relative content of the fatty acid 22:6(n-3), an essential component

SUBMITTER: Saiz E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4601087 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature