Differing thermal sensitivities of physiological processes alter ATP allocation

Abstract

Changes in environmental temperature affect rate processes at all levels of biological organization. Yet the thermal sensitivity of specific physiological processes that affect allocation of the ATP pool within a species is less well understood. In this study of developmental stages of the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas, thermal sensitivities were measured for growth, survivorship, protein synthesis, respiration and transport of amino acids and ions. At warmer temperatures, larvae grew faster but suffered increased mortality. An analysis of temperature sensitivity (Q10 values) revealed that protein synthesis, the major ATP-consuming process in larvae of C. gigas, is more sensitive to temperature change (Q10 value of 2.9±0.18) than metabolic rate (Q10 of 2.0±0.15). Ion transport by Na+/K+-ATPase measured in vivo has a Q10 value of 2.1±0.09. The corresponding value for glycine transport is 2.4±0.23. Differing thermal responses for protein synthesis and respiration result in a disproportional increase in the allocation of available ATP to protein synthesis with rising temperature. A bioenergetic model is presented illustrating how changes in growth and temperature affect allocation of the ATP pool. Over an environmentally relevant temperature range for this species, the proportion of the ATP pool allocated to protein synthesis increases from 35 to 65%. The greater energy demand to support protein synthesis with increasing temperature will compromise energy availability to support other essential physiological processes. Defining the trade-offs of ATP demand will provide insights into understanding the adaptive capacity of organisms to respond to various scenarios of environmental change.