Growth Effects of Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) on Acropora palmata

GABRIEL PASTRANA CASTELLANOS

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

RISE PROGRAM

JULY 2015

Background Information on Acropora palmata•It is a brown, stony coral that grows all around the Caribbean Sea.

•It is one of the main reef-building corals of the Caribbean and it is the home of many species of fish and invertebrates.

•It is a very delicate animal and because of things like diseases, ocean acidification, rising ocean temperatures, and pollution the wild populations of these corals are diminishing.

Acropora palmata

picture taken from http://coral.aims.gov.au

Abstract•It is a well known fact that coral reefs are rapidly diminishing in size and number.

•Previous research indicates that soft corals grow faster in the presence of ascorbic acid.(Kruse, 2011)

•Fragments of Acropora palmata will be used to examine their growth in this experiment

•It is hypothesized that the presence of ascorbic acid in the coral’s water will increase its growth rate

Abstract •Fragments of Acropora palmata will be placed in different aquariums with varying amounts of ascorbic acid concentrations.

•After a period of time the corals will be taken out and measured to see how much they’ve grown.

•The results from the measurements will be compared and analyzed.

Problem•Picture showing many bleached colonies of Acropora palmata

picture taken from griseus.tumblr.com

Problem•Over the past decades there have been several mass coral bleaching events resulting in serious harm to coral reefs around the world.

•Already 27% percent of the reefs worldwide have been destroyed (Cesar, Burke and Pet-Soede, 2003), and 58% of the remaining reefs are at risk due to human activity (Bryant, Lauretta and McManus, 1998).

•In the Caribbean, the Acropora palmata populations have also suffered extensive damage and are in danger.

•If reef-building corals like Acropora palmata can’t be protected then the rest of the coral reef ecosystem will soon vanish and this will bring with it an array of problems for the environment and us.

Hypothesis•If you add ascorbic acid to the water in which Acropora palmata grows, then you could significantly increase the coral’s growth rate.

Goal of this Experiment•The purpose of this experiment is to determine the effects of ascorbic acid on the rate of Acropora palmata’s growth in order to increase the efficiency of coral farming operations where this coral is being propagated so that more of them can be reintroduced into the damaged coral reefs of the Caribbean.

Goal of this Experiment•To increase Acropora palmata’s growth rate.

Picture taken from http://reeftools.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Fiji-Frag-Farm.jpg

Background•Based on previous experiments we know that in the presence of ascorbic acid in its water, Xenia sp. was able to grow faster than Xenia sp. that had no ascorbic acid in its water. (Kruse, 2011)

•We also know that the Xenia sp. grew quicker in water that had a concentration of 1 mg of ascorbic acid per liter of water and that higher concentrations of ascorbic acid its growth rate was still more than without ascorbic acid, but not as much as the 1mg/1l concentration.

Significance• Coral reefs are home to an astonishing array of biodiversity with 32 of the 34 recognized animal phyla present (Wilkinson, 2002).

•Reefs are also essential to the communities which surround them, providing the approximately 450 million people that live within 60 kilometers of a coral reef with a source of livelihood (Clive, 2006).

•Coral reefs provide large economic benefits for these communities with a total net benefit of approximately 30 billion USD per year and a net present value of approximately 800 billion USD (Cesar, Burke and Pet-Soede, 2003).

Overview of Experiment Design• I’ll begin by preparing the coral fragments and each of the aquariums, making sure that each aquarium has the same parameters as the others.

•Then I’ll label each aquarium with its concentration of ascorbic acid and add the indicated amount of ascorbic acid and place the coral fragments in each of the aquariums.

Overview of Experiment Design•Next I’ll let the corals grow checking them everyday to measure their growth by noting down their length and mass and I would also make sure that all the aquariums continue having the same parameters.

•This will continue everyday for sixty days and at the end I’ll gather the results and analyze them to come to a conclusion.

Materials•Four ten liter aquariums

•Four small water pumps (water movement and oxygenation)

•Four LED coral grow lamps

•Four coral racks and plugs (place for corals to grow in the aquarium)

•Distilled water

•Synthetic aquarium salt

•Aquarium additives (to control levels of NO3, pH, and Carbonate hardness)

•Aqueous pH balanced ascorbic acid

•40 Acropora palmata fragments

•Instruments for measuring mass, length, and water parameters

Experiment Design•To get started, I’ll prepare each aquarium by filling it with saltwater and making sure that every aquarium has the following parameters:

i. Specific gravity of 1.025

ii. Nitrate level below 5ppm

iii. pH of 8.4

iv. Carbonate hardness of 10 degrees

v. And a temperature of 26 degrees Celsius

• These parameters were chosen, because they mimic the coral’s natural habitat and are ideal for the coral to grow.

Experiment Design•Next the four aquariums will be labeled as follows according to their ascorbic acid concentration.

i. .5mg/1l

ii. 1mg/1l

iii. 1.5mg/1l

iv. 0.gmg/1l (Control)

•Each aquarium will then receive its indicated amount of ascorbic acid.

Experiment Design•After I’m done preparing the aquariums I will prepare the 40, 3cm coral fragments by numbering each of them (1-40) and note their initial length and mass.

• I will then add the ten 3cm Acropora palmata fragments to each aquarium.

•Ten fragments will be added to each aquarium in order to establish a growth average for each aquarium and increase the experiment’s accuracy.

Experiment Design•Now that everything is set up I will check on the corals daily by measuring the mass and length of each one, additionally I will dose the indicated concentration of ascorbic acid to each of the aquariums and make sure that all the aquariums have the same parameters and adjust them if necessary.

•The above routine will be repeated once every day for sixty days.

•At the end I’ll gather all the data and analyze it so that I am able to come to a conclusion on this experiment.

•After the first experiment is finished, I’ll repeat the whole thing one more time in order to verify the results.

Additional Information About Experiment Design•I based my experimental design on the experiment conducted by Kruse on Xenia, because he was able to have success with his experiment design, but I made slight changes in order to make it better for the needs of my experiment.

•This experiment uses a in vivo model.

•I will need to obtain various permits in order to be able to work with Acropora palmata, which is an endangered species.

Positive and Negative Controls• The experiment can be made with positive and negative controls.

•The positive controls can include many things like increasing certain parameters a bit (Ca, Mg, Fe, I, etc.) which aid in coral growth or feeding the coral, either of these will result in more coral growth.

•The negative control can include many things like increasing certain parameters which cause a reduction in coral growth (pH, NO3, NH3,etc.)

•In order to add the positive and negative controls, I would have to prepare more aquariums with coral fragments and adjust the parameters as necessary.

Expected Results•I expect that adding ascorbic acid to the water in which the coral is living in will increase the coral’s growth rate

• And that like in Kruse’s experiment, in which an ascorbic acid concentration of 1 mg/1l proved to be the most effective in increasing Xenia’s growth rate, my experiment will yield results that an ascorbic acid concentration near to 1mg/1l will be the most effective at increasing Acropora palmata’s growth rate.

Potential Pitfalls •Potential pitfalls in this experiment can include things like:

i. Unseen variables

ii. Problems with precisely measuring the coral’s grow rate.

iii. Small variations between the parameters in the different aquariums.

•If any potential pitfall is found during the experiment, this will have to be addressed by analyzing it and making improvements to the experiment in order to avoid pitfalls in future experiments.

Unexpected Results•In the event that I get unexpected results, I will make sure that there weren’t any errors in my experimental design and review the data.

•If the unexpected results are true and not errors then I would place these results online for others to see them.

•I would also try to analyze what happened during the experiment and design a future experiment with this in mind.

Uses for the Results and Disseminating Them•If the expected results are achieved, then this information could be used to increase Acropora palmata’s growth rate in coral farms where this coral is being cultivated in order increase the number of wild populations of Acropora Palmata.

•Another use is that with more research, you can develop an ascorbic acid supplement for corals and sell it to the saltwater aquarium hobby in order to make profit. There currently are no ascorbic acid supplements made specifically for the saltwater aquarium hobby.

•In order to disseminate the results, I will post them online in various websites dedicated to scientific research and marine biology.

Future Studies•A similar experiment can be made with other coral species to study the effects of ascorbic acid on coral growth rate.

•More experiments can be made on Acropora palmata and ascorbic acid to see what other effects this can have on the coral.

•You can test what other substances can affect Acropora palmata’s or any other coral’s growth rate.

References http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov

http://www.advancedaquarist.com

http://www.cesampr.com

http://web.stanford.edu/group/journal/cgi-bin/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Kruse_NatSci_2011.pdf

Thanks for the Attention