A novel geometry for a laboratory-based larval settlement assay.
A novel configuration, consisting of two apposing surfaces bounding a vertical water column, is presented and evaluated for settlement assays using cyprids of Balanus amphitrite. Assays were conducted on planar surfaces, ranging from hydrophobic polystyrene to hydrophilic glass and including CH(3)- and NH(3) (+)-terminated self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). Identical apposing surfaces generated settlement rates comparable to those obtained in prior studies, while a choice assay yielded consistent results, with individual replicates each indicating the preferred surface for settlement. As gravity favours contact with the lower apposing surface, cyprids trapped at the air/water interface settled on or around the perimeter where the water column meets the lower substratum. These cyprids are capable of selecting a settlement location and are thus not lost to the assay. The assay geometry lends itself to assessing cyprid exploration and settlement on planar surfaces with chemical patterning, including relief microstructures, without using a confining material or requiring the coating of a three-dimensional well.
Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, Agency for Science Technology and Research, A∗STAR, Singapore.
Luigi
L
Petrone
Serina Siew Chen
SS
Lee
Serena Lay Ming
SL
Teo
William R
WR
Birch
D000818:Animals; D057219:Biofouling; D001681:Biological Assay / Q000379:methods*; D005106:Exploratory Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D005898:Glass; D006112:Gravitation; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D007753:Laboratories; D007814:Larva / Q000502:physiology; D008386:Marine Biology / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D011137:Polystyrenes / Q000737:chemistry; D011156:Population Density; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D001468:Thoracica / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
D011137:Polystyrenes; D014867:Water