Reduced H⁺ channel activity disrupts pH homeostasis and calcification in coccolithophores at low ocean pH.

ABSTRACT: Coccolithophores are major producers of ocean biogenic calcite, but this process is predicted to be negatively affected by future ocean acidification scenarios. Since coccolithophores calcify intracellularly, the mechanisms through which changes in seawater carbonate chemistry affect calcification remain unclear. Here we show that voltage-gated H+ channels in the plasma membrane of Coccolithus braarudii serve to regulate pH and maintain calcification under normal conditions but have greatly reduced activity in cells acclimated to low pH. This disrupts intracellular pH homeostasis and impairs the ability of C. braarudii to remove H+ generated by the calcification process, leading to specific coccolith malformations. These coccolith malformations can be reproduced by pharmacological inhibiti

SUBMITTER: Kottmeier DM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9171652 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature