Objective CORALASSIST spans the disciplines of evolutionary biology, restoration ecology and proteomics and examines the role assisted gene flow (AGF) can play in sustaining biodiversity and ecosystem services in the face of climate change. AGF involves the deliberate movement of individuals or gametes within their natural range to facilitate adaptation to environmental change. Corals reefs provide an excellent model for testing AGF as a conservation tool because reef building corals are foundation species and are highly vulnerable to thermal stress. Selective breeding and translocation of thermotolerant individuals may lead to reductions in recipient population fitness due to resource trade-offs with other fitness traits, such as growth and fecundity. The overall aim of CORALASSIST is to establish the feasibility of implementing AGF in coral reef ecosystems using a combination of selective breeding, proteomics and innovative translocation techniques. CORALASSIST will address four primary questions: 1) Are there resource trade-offs between increased thermotolerance and other fitness traits in corals? 2) Which physiological and proteomic traits correlate with increased individual thermotolerance in corals? 3) Are phenotypic traits for thermotolerance heritable? 4) Can AGF and selective breeding lead to persistent shifts in thermotolerance in recipient populations? Phenotypic traits will be measured in permanently tagged individuals within selected coral populations to examine the relationships between thermotolerance and key fitness attributes. For the first time, state of the art proteomic approaches will be used to elucidate the physiological basis for increased levels of thermotolerance in corals. Innovative translocation methods will be used in tandem with selective breeding techniques to carry out the first long term assessment of heritability of thermotolerance and to test the feasibility of large scale AGF to assist conservation of coral reef ecosystems. Fields of science natural sciencesbiological sciencesbiochemistrybiomoleculesproteinsproteomicsnatural sciencesbiological sciencesevolutionary biologynatural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystemsnatural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesatmospheric sciencesclimatologyclimatic changes Keywords Coral Reef Ecological Restoration Climate Change Assisted Gene Flow Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme Topic(s) ERC-2016-COG - ERC Consolidator Grant Call for proposal ERC-2016-COG See other projects for this call Funding Scheme ERC-COG - Consolidator Grant Coordinator UNIVERSITY OF NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE Net EU contribution € 2 023 119,00 Address Kings gate NE1 7RU Newcastle upon tyne United Kingdom See on map Region North East (England) Northumberland and Tyne and Wear Tyneside Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00 Beneficiaries (1) Sort alphabetically Sort by Net EU contribution Expand all Collapse all UNIVERSITY OF NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE United Kingdom Net EU contribution € 2 023 119,00 Address Kings gate NE1 7RU Newcastle upon tyne See on map Region North East (England) Northumberland and Tyne and Wear Tyneside Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00
