The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB) conference is a national gem for highlighting research from biologists across the country. This year, over a thousand researchers shared their work in Phoenix, AZ and on online platforms for the 2022 SICB conference. Fourth-year Ph.D. Candidate, Annelise Blanchette, from Tulane University in New Orleans, LA under Drs. Alex Gunderson and Jordan Karubian was one of these presenters. Like Phoenix, New Orleans is a bustling city with everything from high-rise skyscrapers soaking in the Louisiana sun to paved neighborhoods polluted with anthropogenic waste (e.g., Mardi Gras beads). Ms. Blanchette discussed this idea of pollution, particularly the contaminant lead, at SICB 2022 and wanted to know more about the influence of lead on physiological performance of her study species, the Cuban brown anole (Anolis sagrei).
Ms. Annelise Blanchette and her study organism, the brown anole (Anolis sagrei).
Ms. Blanchette’s previous work showed that anoles from areas in New Orleans with high soil lead levels had over 10X the toxicity threshold of lead (in comparison to birds and mammals) in their bloodstreams. She wanted to know how these lizards were influenced physiologically by lead exposure and how that translates to physiological performance by measuring sprint speeds and balancing ability of anoles from these regions. She predicted that there would be an overall negative effect of high bloodstream lead levels and that lizards from these high exposure areas would 1) not be as fast as their counterparts in terms of sprint speed, and 2) have decreased balance, measured by counting the number of times they slipped on a wooden beam.
Measuring balance of anoles by counting number of times individuals slip from the wooden beam.
From her results, she found that there is no correlation between lead exposure and sprint speeds; however, there is a negative effect of lead on balance that may be sex-dependent. In fact, male anoles exposed to low levels of lead had fewer slips (i.e., better balance) than males exposed to high levels of lead. She states “It’s surprising given the incredibly high levels of lead in their bloodstream that the brown anole is coping with the exposure so well.” This work is particularly fascinating because it begins to uncover ways urbanization can influence wildlife in nearby regions though pollution of heavy metals. “… if we don’t find an obvious or devastating affect behaviorally or cognitively in the brown anole, perhaps we’ll find that they have adapted and are less resistant to lead’s detrimental effects – which would be so cool!” Ms. Blanchette says. She hopes that next year, like many other virtual SICB members, she will be able to present her work in person!
You can check out Annelise’s talk from SICB 2022 here! Follow her on Twitter @basicbiologist!
- SICB 2022: Anole Nesting Behavior under Predator-Presence! - January 15, 2022
- SICB 2022: Let’s Chat about Lizard Sperm! - January 13, 2022
- SICB 2022: Lizards and Lead: What’s Going on with Anoles in New Orleans? - January 11, 2022
Dr Rashmi Sharma M.Sc. Ph.D. D.Sc. D.C.A. F.S.A.S.
Excellent. Lead pollution cause Lung cancer, Asthama ,Leukemia , Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Neurological diseases , Chronic Kidney diseases, Hemorrhagic disease ,Hypertensive heart disorder ,Ischemic heart disease , Ischemic stroke .