Seagrasses, the unique adaptation of angiosperms to the marine environment: effect of high carbon and ocean acidification on energetics and ion homeostasis.

Abstract As a functional group, seagrasses form highly productive ecosystems present along the coasts of all continents (except Antarctica), where they rival tropical rainforests and coral reefs in ecosystem services (Costanza et al., 1997; Fourqurean et al., 2012). Unfortunately, seagrasses are diminishing worldwide and several studies confirm a lack of appreciation for the value of these systems (Cullen-Unsworth et al., 2014). Since the last century, the effects of climate change on natural and agricultural terrestrial plant communities have already received significant attention, but relatively little emphasis has been given to aquatic plant communities, including seagrasses (Koch et al., 2013). Here we analyse the potential impact of global atmospheric CO2 increase on the adaptation mechanisms of these vascular plants to marine environments, highlighting the effects on membrane energization, nutrient uptake and cytosolic ion homeostasis.