ABSTRACT Sharks have been facing unprecedented pressure over the last decades, and ocean acidification may represent an additional threat, particularly during their most susceptible life stages. Hence, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of ocean acidification (control pCO2 ~ 400 μatm; high pCO2 ~ 900 μatm) on the growth, swimming performance and cholinergic system of juvenile white-spotted bamboo sharks (Chiloscyllium plagiosum). After 45 days of exposure, we observed that high CO2 did not affect most of the end-points studied. However, somatic growth rate and the percentage of time that sharks spent swimming was significantly reduced under high CO2 conditions. Moreover, AChE activity decreased in two of the seven brain macroareas analyzed, the telencephalon and optic lobes. As this near-threatened shark species showed small sub-lethal effects to high CO2 levels, we argue that within a longer time-frame they can potentially reduce individual performance with cascading consequences to shark population dynamics.

中文翻译：

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减少海洋酸化对新孵化的热带鲨鱼（Chiloscyllium plagiosum）生长和游泳性能的影响

摘要 在过去的几十年里，鲨鱼一直面临着前所未有的压力，海洋酸化可能是一个额外的威胁，尤其是在它们最容易受到影响的生命阶段。因此，本研究旨在调查海洋酸化（控制 pCO2 ~ 400 μatm；高 pCO2 ~ 900 μatm）对幼年白斑竹鲨（Chiloscyllium plagiosum）生长、游泳性能和胆碱能系统的影响。暴露 45 天后，我们观察到高 CO2 不会影响大多数研究的终点。然而，在高二氧化碳条件下，体细胞增长率和鲨鱼游泳的时间百分比显着降低。此外，在分析的七个大脑大区域中的两个，端脑和视叶中，AChE 活性降低。