Dr Trystan Sanders (He/Him)

I am an experimental animal physiologist interested in understanding how aquatic organisms respond to and perform under different environmental conditions. I apply physiological understanding to a range of contexts including marine climate change, ecosystem functioning and sustainable aquaculture. My research centres around three key themes:

Protein turnover

‘The turnover of an animals’ proteome is one of the most energy-intensive processes in life and underpins body growth rates, lifespan and resistance to stress/disease’   

A recent focus of my work has looked at how high environmental CO₂ impacts protein synthesis and degradation in whiteleg shrimp, the most farmed aquatic animal on the planet. Utilising stable isotope labelling, mass spectrometry and immunohistochemistry, my work has shown that high CO₂ decreases protein synthesis and increases protein degradation and nitrogenous waste excretion. This has ramifications for individual growth rates, feed utilisation efficiency and water quality in aquaculture, making protein turnover a potential target for dietary interventions and selection of optimum performance traits.

Biogenic Calcification

‘CaCO₃ mineralisation exists in 60 % of marine invertebrate taxa, but we know little about the physiological mechanisms behind this process.’  

My PhD thesis focussed on quantifying the energetic costs of bivalve calcification in different environments. Combining seawater chemistry manipulations with energetic models, we estimated calcification to cost about 15x less energy than protein growth. My current work investigates how salinity and carbonate chemistry in recirculating aquaculture systems impacts post-moult acid-base regulation and calcium transport in white leg shrimp. Findings suggest this species of prawn to have the highest calcium uptake rate of any known animal, and a remarkable ability to obtain calcium from water even at calcium concentrations 30 x lower than seawater.

Organism-Environment Interactions

‘The environment determines organisms’ traits, but it is less clear how strongly organisms reciprocally modify their environment.’

While much of my work focuses on how the environment shapes animal physiology and functioning, I also study how variability in animal behaviour and physiology can affect ecosystems. This includes investigations into how biomass, burial behaviour and individual metabolism affects seafloor nutrient release and oxygen uptake. My recent research has shown that sediment-dwelling marine invertebrates contribute more to ecosystem functioning when at lower densities, and have a larger effect on sediment oxygen uptake and nutrient release in summer than in winter.

Career:

2010 – 2013       BSc. (hons.) Marine Biology – University of Plymouth, UK

2013 – 2014       Assistant Aquarium Technician – MBA Plymouth, UK

2014 – 2018       PhD in Marine Ecophysiology – GEOMAR, Germany

2018 – 2020       Career Break – Bicycle expedition 20 000 km UK to New Zealand

2020 – 2021       Environmental Consultant, SLR, New Zealand

2021 – 2022       Postdoctoral Researcher in Marine Ecology, University of Southampton, UK.

2022 –                 Postdoctoral Researcher in Animal Physiology, University of Exeter, UK