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Triple threat processes and/or other forcings can lead to changes in the ocean happening fast and abruptly. These changes, referred to as “tipping points”, are critical thresholds in a marine system that, when exceeded, can lead to a significant change in the state of the system, which often can be irreversible. This leaflet has been prepared mainly (but not only) for high school pupils with the financial support of Norges forskningsråd (Research Council of Norway) (309382).

Microplastics are substrates for microbial activity and can influence biomass production. This has potentially important implications at the sea-surface microlayer, the marine boundary layer that controls gas exchange with the atmosphere and where biologically produced organic compounds can accumulate. In the present study, we used large scale mesocosms (filled with 3 m3 of seawater) to simulate future ocean scenarios. We explored microbial organic matter dynamics in the sea-surface microlayer in the presence and absence of microplastic contamination of the underlying water. Our study shows that microplastics increased both biomass production and enrichment of particulate carbohydrates and proteins in the sea-surface microlayer. Importantly, this resulted in a 3% reduction in the concentration of dissolved CO2 in the underlying water. This reduction suggests direct and indirect impacts of microplastic pollution on the marine uptake of CO2, by modifying the biogenic composition of the sea’s boundary layer with the atmosphere.

Knowledge gaps pertaining to the remediation of freshwater lakes impacted by oil spills have persisted despite recent record highs for oil production and transportation across vulnerable regions in North America. The multiyear Freshwater Oil Spill Remediation Study (FOReSt), conducted at the IISD-Experimental Lakes Area in Canada, is focusing on the efficacy of minimally invasive methods for remediating oil spills in freshwater boreal lakes. In this thesis, the impacts and remediation of diluted bitumen (dilbit) and conventional heavy crude oil (CHV) spills were investigated (year 1), as were a variety of different remediation methods for spills of dilbit on different shoreline substrates (year 2). Two common small-bodied fish, fathead minnows (Promephales promelas) and finescale dace (Chrosomus neogaeus), were used to assess exposure to petrogenic polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) in model enclosed shoreline ecosystems impacted by spills and remediated using minimally invasive techniques. Short-term exposure to PACs, the most toxicologically relevant compounds in oil, was assessed in fish using biliary metabolite concentrations. In year one, finescale dace and fathead minnows residing in oil treated enclosures each had biliary pyrene metabolite concentrations that were positively correlated with pyrene concentrations in the water of the enclosures. Three months after the initial spills, fish in the enclosure receiving dilbit were significantly more exposed to PACs than fish in reference enclosures that did not receive oil. In year two, both finescale dace and fathead minnows residing in oil-treated exposures, regardless of shoreline substrate, showed increased exposure to PACs compared to fish in reference enclosures and the pristine lake environment two and a half months after the spills. No significant differences in exposure were observed among the remediation treatments. Biliary PAC metabolite concentrations were positively predicted by parent PAC concentrations in periphyton. PACs in periphyton two and a half months after oil introduction were positively correlated with PACs in the enclosures one week after spills, suggesting fish also had increased exposure to periphyton-bound alkyl-PACs. This thesis validates the use of small-bodied fish in assessing PAC exposure following freshwater oil spills and demonstrates the difficulties in estimating exposure using environmental concentrations in natural systems.

Understanding and quantifying ES flows is essential for the sustainable management of social-ecological systems, as it directly captures the human-nature interactions within the system and not solely its individual elements. Especially in degrading marine systems, most ES assessments focus solely on either biophysical or socio-economic elements of these social-ecological systems, failing to directly capture the human-nature interactions. This systematic literature review aims to capture the state of the art of ES flow studies to improve the knowledge base on marine ES flows while highlighting knowledge gaps and discussing future research pathways. Within the review we extract information on: i) the ES flow definitions, classification systems, and indicators; ii) the scales of assessment and methods used to assess marine ES flows; and iii) the types of assessment outputs. 82% of the reviewed ES flow assessment methods were spatially explicit. 63% of the studies assess marine ES flows locally. Across-scale ES flows are rarely taken into account. We detect a broad range of conceptualizations within marine ES flow literature. We thus propose an updated definition for ES flows in which they are defined as a spectrum within the social-ecological system, within which different ES flow indicators are placed depending on the relative contributions of biophysical or socio-economic attributes. Based on the extracted information and detected literature gaps, we propose a set of four criteria that should be the minimum required information when referring to ES flows: i) the relative contributions of biophysical and socio-economic attributes present in ES flow indicators; ii) identification of the supplying and receiving systems; iii) the direction and branches of flows; and iv) the spatial and temporal scales across which ES flows occur.

The environment during early life history strongly impacts phenotypic development in all organisms, which further influences developmental trajectory and ecological fitness later in life. Depending on the developmental stage and magnitude of change in the environment, phenotypes may become irreversible and thus have a long-lasting effect later in life. This thesis was designed to better understand how changes in the environment may influence plasticity and variation of metabolic phenotypes of Lake Sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) within the first year of life. Broadly speaking, the thesis tested two hypotheses that 1) all measured phenotypes would be plastic; and 2) durations of environmental effects on phenotypic development would be correlated with distinct developmental windows. Studies were developed to examine 1) short-term effects of temperature or diet on metabolic phenotypes such as metabolic rate, energy density, fatty acid profiles, and growth (Chapters 2 and 3) and 2) longer-term effects of temperature or diet during early life on these metabolic phenotypes (Chapters 4, 5 and 6). The first experimental chapter (Chapter 2) examined ontogenetic development of metabolic rate and demonstrated that dietary shifts between Artemia to bloodworm resulted in cessation of growth with elevated routine metabolic rate. Chapter 3 examined how fatty acid profiles and plasma cortisol concentration were influenced by environmental temperature and showed that decreasing temperature led to increases in mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids in both phospholipids and triglycerides, and food deprivation resulted in lack of difference between baseline and peak cortisol concentrations. Chapter 4 examined how temperature during early life influenced plasticity of growth and showed that temperature post-dietary transition resulted in a transient effect on growth and energy metabolism without long-term effects post-winter. Chapter 5 examined how temperature during early life could influence growth and fatty acid metabolism when fish were exposed to colder temperatures later in life and demonstrated that elevated temperatures resulted in a longer-term effect on growth but lack of transcriptional responses of desaturating fatty acids when exposed to a cold temperature (3.5°C) later in life. The final experimental chapter, Chapter 6 examined longer-term effects of diet at the onset of exogenous feeding on metabolism and growth and demonstrated that an enriched diet resulted in prolonged effects on growth, digestive enzyme activity and survival prior to a simulated overwintering. This doctoral thesis research revealed that all measured metabolic phenotypes were plastic, but subtle changes in temperature and diet during early life history resulted in transient or prolonged effects on growth and metabolism in age-0 lake sturgeon. Results will aid our understanding of cohort and population dynamics as well as contribute to the development of conservation strategies for lake sturgeon, a species at risk or endangered across its natural range.

This is the English version of the informed consent that has been used for staekholder interactions. Similar forms have been used for focus groups and workshops.

It is widely argued that humans deteriorate and vandalize ecosystems, yet little is known about the advantages they receive from the same. The study employs the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach to identify studies on the value of ecosystems, with a focus on estuaries between the years 2000 to 2021. The review included a total of 61 studies, which highlighted: (a) the importance of estuarine ecosystem services; (b) the stress placed on estuaries as a result of human activity; and (c) the importance of ecosystem services to human well-being. These studies aid in our understanding of the provisioning and cultural services that ecosystems provide to humans, as well as how the ecosystem services assist individuals in diversifying their livelihoods. Our systematic review revealed that: (a) estuaries provide benefits to humans and are used for survival, (b) cultural ecosystem services are important and valuable; however, (c) as a result of human activities and climate change, ecosystem services face numerous threats such as pollution, overexploitation of resources, and poor water quality, among others. Future research should focus on how estuary users perceive the ecosystem services that estuaries provide, and there should be more publications and studies on the benefits that estuaries provide. The systematic review highlighted that most studies are outdated, there are few to no new studies on ecosystem services and estuaries, and those that are available do not directly address the importance of estuaries. provisioning ecosystem services; estuaries; cultural ecosystem services; fishing

The success of the messenger RNA-based COVID-19 vaccines of Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech marks the beginning of a new chapter in modern medicine. However, the rapid rise of mRNA therapeutics has resulted in a regulatory framework that is somewhat lagging. The current guidelines either do not apply, do not mention RNA therapeutics, or do not have widely accepted definitions. This review describes the guidelines for preclinical biodistribution studies of mRNA/siRNA therapeutics and highlights the relevant differences for mRNA vaccines. We also discuss the role of in vivo RNA imaging techniques and other assays to fulfill and/or complement the regulatory requirements. Specifically, quantitative whole-body autoradiography, microautoradiography, mass spectrometry-based assays, hybridization techniques (FISH, bDNA), PCR-based methods, in vivo fluorescence imaging, and in vivo bioluminescence imaging, are discussed. We conclude that this new and rapidly evolving class of medicines demands a multi-layered approach to fully understand its biodistribution and in vivo characteristics.