The metabolic response of marine copepods (Calanus spp.) to food deprivation, end-of-century ocean acidification, and global warming scenarios

Marine copepods are central to the healthy functioning of the world’s oceans; they are preyed upon by the larvae of commercially important fish and contribute to the biological carbon pump by producing dense fecal pellets that transport carbon into deeper waters. This chapter describes an untargeted metabolomics study that examined how the metabolic physiology of important marine copepods, Calanus helgolandicus and Calanus finmarchicus, was affected by 5 days of exposure to decreased pH and increased seawater temperature in the absence of food. The physiological stresses associated with food deprivation greatly exceed those caused by perturbating seawater temperature or pH and were manifest via the upregulation of protein and lipid metabolism. We describe the salient points of the original publication, including the discovery of a novel class of taurine-containing lipids in Calanus spp. Moreover, we aim to provide uninitiated users of metabolomics with a brief insight into how to get the best out of this exciting science.