Revised Estimates of the Effects of Turbulence on Fertilization in the Purple Sea Urchin, <i>Strongylocentrotus purpuratus</i>

Denny, Mark W.; Nelson, Elizabeth; Mead, Kristina S.

doi:10.2307/1543570

Cited by 42 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…For most species, sperm and egg live in a world dominated by viscous forces and subjected to the physics of laminar-shear flows (Karp-Boss et al, 1996;Denny et al, 2002;Fauci and Dillon, 2006). Male and female gametes of both internal and external fertilizing animals ultimately make contact and fuse in such environments.…”

Section: Fluid Motion and Sperm-egg Interactionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex and flow: the consequences of fluid shear for sperm–egg interactions

Riffell

Zimmer

2007

Journal of Experimental Biology

102

124

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SUMMARY Fertilization is a complex interaction among biological traits of gametes and physical properties of the fluid environment. At the scale of fertilization (0.01–1 mm), sperm encounter eggs while being transported within a laminar (or viscous) shear flow. Varying laminar-shear in a Taylor-Couette flow tank, our experiments simulated important aspects of small-scale turbulence within the natural habitats of red abalone(Haliotis rufescens), a large marine mollusk and external fertilizer. Behavioral interactions between individual cells, sperm–egg encounter rates, and fertilization success were quantified, simultaneously, using a custom-built infrared laser and computer-assisted video imaging system. Relative to still water, sperm swam faster and moved towards an egg surface,but only in comparatively slow flows. Encounter rate, swim speed and orientation, and fertilization success each peaked at the lowest shear tested(0.1 s–1), and then decayed as shear increased beyond 1.0 s–1. The decay did not result, however, from damage to either sperm or eggs. Analytical and numerical models were used to estimate the propulsive force generated by sperm swimming (Fswim) and the shear force produced by fluid motion within the vicinity of a rotating egg(Fshear). To first order, male gametes were modeled as prolate spheroids. The ratio Fswim/Fshear was useful in explaining sperm–egg interactions. At low shears where Fswim/Fshear>1, sperm swam towards eggs, encounter rates were pronounced, and fertilization success was very high; behavior overpowered fluid motion. In contrast, sperm swimming,encounter rate and fertilization success all decayed rapidly when Fswim/Fshear<1; fluid motion dominated behavior. The shears maximizing fertilization success in the lab typically characterized natural flow microenvironments of spawning red abalone. Gamete behavior thus emerges as a critical determinant of sexual reproduction in the turbulent sea.

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Section: Fluid Motion and Sperm-egg Interactionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex and flow: the consequences of fluid shear for sperm–egg interactions

Riffell

Zimmer

2007

Journal of Experimental Biology

102

124

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“…These concerns, however, have not been issued without some basis. It is well established that turbulence structure plays a very important role in benthic ecology with regard to the encounter and detection of odor plumes (Finelli et al 1999;Mead et al 2002;Weissburg et al 2002), fertilization of freely released gametes (Denny and Shibata 1989;Denny et al 2002;Crimaldi and Browning 2004), patterns of larval settlement (Crimaldi et al 2002), uptake of organic particles by active filter feeders (Frechette et al 1989), and fluxes of dissolved materials from sediment beds (Santschi et al 1991;Dade 1993;Lorke et al 2003).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of nonlocal turbulence on the mass transfer of dissolved species to reef corals

Falter¹,

Atkinson²,

Lowe³

et al. 2007

Limnology & Oceanography

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We examined the importance of nonlocal turbulence to the mass transfer of dissolved species from both cylinders and models of reef coral. Solid gypsum cylinders and gypsum-coated model coral were dissolved in an outdoor flume at mean flow speeds of 4.5 and 10 cm s 21 . Three model corals were used: two branched forms of the genera Acropora and Pocillopora, and one lobate form of the genus Platygyra. Turbulence intensities (Tu) were measured as the ratio of the standard deviation of the time-variant flow to the mean. Tu of between 5% and 55% were created independently of the mean flow by pumping water through two vertical arrays of jets. Mass transfer coefficients increased by 10-70% with turbulence intensity for all forms at both mean flow speeds considered (p , 0.05); however, mass transfer coefficients for the branched coral were not as sensitive to changes in turbulence intensity as for the lobate coral. Results for the cylinders were consistent with the engineering literature and indicate that the effects of turbulence intensity on mass transfer become weaker when branch size or flow speed (or both) become very small. Turbulence intensities measured around experimental coral communities and above naturally occurring reef communities typically vary between 15% and 35%. Assuming an average turbulence intensity of around 25%, then ignoring the effects of nonlocal turbulence altogether would result in uncertainties in mass transfer coefficients of at most 610% for the lobate coral form and 65% for the branched coral forms. Measuring external turbulence in bulk flows is not necessary for most evaluations of biogeochemical rates in benthic reef systems.

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“…data). Consequently, once the eggs were washed from the surface of the anemones, very few would have been fertilised because of gamete dilution (Denny & Shibata 1989, Mead & Denny 1995, Denny et al 2002. Therefore, the fertilisation rates recorded for eggs collected prior to the incoming tide are likely to provide a good estimate of fertilisation success, although they may slightly underestimate total success.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Consequences of spawning at low tide: limited gamete dispersal for a rockpool anemone

Marshall

Semmens

Cook

2004

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Recently, there has been much debate surrounding the importance of sperm limitation to the population dynamics and evolution of life-history traits of free-spawning marine invertebrates. The debate is hampered by a lack of measures of fertilisation success from natural spawning events. We observed the natural spawning of the intertidal anemone Oulactis mucosa during a low tide in SE Australia. The fertilisation success of individual females was assessed, as well as the degree of spawning synchrony among and within rockpools. We found that fertilisation success was extremely variable among females; females spawning in rockpools containing spawning males had much higher fertilisation success than females in pools without males. Spawned gametes remained in a viscous matrix throughout the low tide, and the movement of sperm among pools appeared to be minimal. Consequently, isolated females had very low rates of fertilisation success, and spawning synchrony in all-female pools strongly depended on the distance to the nearest neighbouring pool containing a spawning male. We suggest that spawning at low tide may minimise the problems associated with gamete dilution, but also results in poor communication among spawning individuals and thus limited genetic exchange at reproduction and low rates of synchrony. KEY WORDS: Broadcast spawner · Reproductive success · Chemical communication Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisher

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Revised Estimates of the Effects of Turbulence on Fertilization in the Purple Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus

Cited by 42 publications

References 12 publications

Sex and flow: the consequences of fluid shear for sperm–egg interactions

Sex and flow: the consequences of fluid shear for sperm–egg interactions

Effects of nonlocal turbulence on the mass transfer of dissolved species to reef corals

Consequences of spawning at low tide: limited gamete dispersal for a rockpool anemone

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