Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/E006949/1
The impact of bleaching on disease susceptibility and defence in reef building corals
Grant Award
- Principal Investigator:
- Professor J Bythell, Newcastle University, Sch of Biology
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor T O'Donnell, Newcastle University, Sch of Biology
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr CV Lanyon, Newcastle University, Sch of Biology
- Grant held at:
- Newcastle University, Sch of Biology
- Science Area:
- Marine
- Overall Classification:
- Marine
- ENRIs:
- Natural Resource Management
- Global Change
- Biodiversity
- Science Topics:
- Environmental Microbiology
- Climate & Climate Change
- Abstract:
- Most scientists agree that sea temperature increases due to global climate change have already caused mass mortality of corals throughout the tropics over the last 5-10 years. Given the current climate change predictions from organisations like the Hadley Centre in the UK, it appears likely that increases in sea temperatures will cause the complete collapse of these ecosystems within only a few decades. These estimates may be too pessimistic, because corals are able to adapt to rising temperatures using a variety of mechanisms. However, at the same time coral diseases have become increasingly common, as they have in many other systems and groups of organisms. Several scientists have proposed that these increases in disease are linked to climate change and we aim here to test whether temperature stress increases a corals' susceptibility to disease by monitoring indicators of health, antimicrobial defences and bacterial community structure and function. There are other possible causes of the recorded increase in diseases, however, such as increased transport and transfer of micro-organisms via tourists or ships' ballast water, for example. It is therfore vital that we understand the disease process so that appropriate and effective measures can be used to improve the health of coral reefs.
- NERC Reference:
- NE/E006949/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- Standard Grant (FEC)
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- Standard Grant
This grant award has a total value of £331,755
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| DI - Other Costs | Indirect - Indirect Costs | DA - Investigators | DI - Equipment | DA - Estate Costs | DI - Staff | DA - Other Directly Allocated | DI - T&S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £45,432 | £101,275 | £28,386 | £5,828 | £36,279 | £78,301 | £10,802 | £25,452 |
If you need further help, please read the user guide.