Does climate change affect tardigrades?

Application summary

Climate change has been shown to negatively impact organisms and their environments. However, our knowledge about its effects and potential adaptations is lacking for micrometazoans. Tardigrades are a phylum of microscopic animals best known for their cryptobiotic ability and its associated taxon-specific molecular adaptations. However, these animals are sensitive to moderately high temperatures when in the active state. The aim of this project is to investigate the molecular adaptations and life-history consequences of (high) temperature stress. I will investigate if there are sex- and/or age-dependent differences in survival and reproductive success, as well as transcriptome response. Furthermore, the potential for (negative) synergistic effect of temperature and two other climate stresses (suboptimal humidity and UV-radiation) will be also investigated. This work provides a comprehensive view of abiotic stress consequences in a neglected part of natural ecosystems, ultimately informing a more inclusive mitigation policy against ongoing anthropogenic change.