Erik Sandblom

Forskarassistent (fil.Dr.), zoofysiologi

Tel: 031-786 36 97 | erik.sandblom@bioenv.gu.se

Research interests

I have a broad-ranging interest in comparative physiology, particularly as it relates to fish. My main area of expertise is cardiorespiratory physiology, and I am particularly interested in the physiological adjustments and responses to environmental factors such as temperature and oxygen availability. Most of my work is performed at the level of the intact animal, often in combination with various biochemical and pharmacological techniques.


Aerial view of the Biotest Lake in Forsmark (photo: National Board of Fisheries)

Research project

Currently, much of our research activities revolve around the physiological consequences of thermal acclimation and adaptation in fish. To this end, we utilize a unique experimental facility called the “Biotest Lake” in the Baltic Sea off the Forsmark nuclear power plant. Heated cooling water has been directed to the lake for over thirty years keeping the water temperature 5-10 degrees above the surrounding archipelago. Several species of fish, including Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis), inhabit the heated lake providing us with an exceptional experimental model to study the biological effects of global warming and climate change. Current theories suggest that insufficient oxygen transport is a primary limitation for ectothermic animals at elevated temperatures. By using a multi-disciplinary approach we investigate limiting steps in oxygen transport physiology and temperature behavior across life stages in fish. By comparing fish from the Biotest Lake with populations from the nearby archipelago at normal temperatures; the mechanisms of physiological plasticity and genetic adaptation to chronically elevated temperature are studied. Specifically, we aim to: 1) Determine how cardiorespiratory function is affected. 2) Determine how the response and resilience to synergistic metabolic challenges like heat spells and aquatic hypoxia has changed. 3) Determine how behavioral temperature preference, as well as lethal temperature limits have changed. 4) Determine whether embryos and larvae are less resilient to temperature than adult fish. 5) Determine if heritable adaptation to heat has evolved. The project will give unique information on physiological and behavioral adjustments to chronically elevated temperature in ectothermic vertebrates. This knowledge is essential to foresee the effects on distribution and survival of fish and other ectotherms as the climate changes.

Main collaborators: Teija Aho (SLU, Institute of Coastal Research); Fredrik Jutfelt (University of Gothenburg); Fredrik Sundström (Uppsala University).

Funded by: The Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (FORMAS) and The Swedish Research Council (VR).