It was hypothesized that chronic hypoxia will affect various biological processes including developmental trajectory and behavior. To test this hypothesis, embryos were raised to adulthood in severe hypoxic environments (0.5% O2 or 1% O2, 22°C) and analyzed for survival rate, developmental progression, and altered behaviors. Wildtype hermaphrodites survive chronic hypoxia yet developmental trajectory is slowed. The hermaphrodites raised in chronic hypoxia had different phenotypes in comparison to the normoxic controls. First, hermaphrodites exposed to chronic hypoxia produced a significantly lower number of embryos and had a slight increase in male progeny. This suggests that chronic hypoxia exposure during development affects the germline. Second, animals raised in chronic hypoxia from embryos to young adults have a slight increase in lifespan when re-exposed to a normoxic environment, indicating that chronic hypoxia does not negatively decrease lifespan. Finally, hermaphrodites that were raised in hypoxia will lay the majority of their eggs on the area of the agar plate where the bacterial lawn is not present. This is in contrast to animals in normoxia, which lay the majority of their eggs on the bacterial lawn. One hypothesis for this hypoxia-induced egg-laying behavior is that the animal can sense microenvironments in hypoxia. To examine if various pathways are involved with chronic-hypoxia responses RNAi and assayed genetic mutants were used. Specifically, genetic mutations affecting oxygen sensing (egl-9), aerotaxis (npr-1), TFG-ß signaling (dbl-1, daf-7) and predicted oxygen-binding proteins (globin-like genes) were phenotypically analyzed. Results indicate that mutations in several of these genes (npr-1, dbl-1) resulted in a decrease in hypoxia survival rate. A mutation in egl-9 also had a detrimental affect on the viability of an animal raised in chronic hypoxia. However, a similar phenotype was not observed in the vhl-1 mutation indicating that the phenotype may not be due to a mere increase in HIF-1 levels, per se. A mutation in the globin-like gene (glb-13(tm2825)) suppressed the hypoxia-induced egg-laying phenotype. That is, the glb-13(tm2825) animal raised in chronic hypoxia laid eggs on the bacterial lawn at a significantly higher rate in comparison to wildtype controls, thus suggesting that globin-like molecules may be involved with the sensing of microenvironments. Together, this research lays the foundation for understanding the implications of chronic hypoxia in developing organisms.

[pt] Este trabalho teve como objetivo caracterizar química e morfologicamente material particulado (PM2.5 e PM10) coletado na zona sul e oeste da cidade de Rio de Janeiro e na região metropolitana, utilizando técnicas como a Cromatografia de íons (CI), Espectrometria de Massas com Plasma Indutivamente Acoplado (ICPMS) e a Microscopia Eletrônica de Varredura acoplada ao Espectrômetro de RaiosX por Dispersão de Energia (MEV-EDX). Além disso, foram realizados ensaios toxicológicos com C. elegans para avaliar os efeitos da exposição ao material particulado (MP), nas diferentes frações de tamanho. Concentrações médias anuais de PM2.5 entre 7,40 +/- 3,96 (micrograma)m-3 e 17,4 +/- 7,38 (micrograma) m-3 foram medidas durante os anos 2015 e 2018, as quais foram inferiores ao padrão intermediário da qualidade do ar, estabelecido pelo CONAMA, registando-se as maiores médias anuais durante o 2016, ano em que foram realizados os Jogos Olímpicos. Resultados das análises químicas mostraram que o MP em todos os pontos de coleta estava constituído principalmente por espécies iônicas como Cl- , NO3 - , Na+ e SO4 2- e elementos como V, Ni, Cu, Cd, Sn e Pb, sendo determinadas apenas variações significativa (p menor que 0,05) nas concentrações de SO4 2- , NO3 - , Na+ , Cu e Sn, entre os períodos estudados. Através dos resultados das análises de MEV-EDX as partículas atmosféricas se classificaram segundo sua morfologia – Fuligem, esféricas, biológica e minerais- e segundo sua composição elementar – partículas com teor de enxofre, de cloro e de ferro -. Finalmente, efeitos tóxicos foram observados pela exposição ao PM10 e PM2.5 em organismos C. elegans, alterando parâmetros fisiológicos (e.g. crescimento e reprodução) e promovendo respostas dos mecanismos antioxidantes, como resultado do estresse oxidativo gerado por espécies presentes no MP. / [en] This work aimed to characterize chemically and morphologically particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) collected in the south and west zones of the city of Rio de Janeiro and in the metropolitan region, using techniques such as ion chromatography (IC), inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and Scanning electron microscopy- energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDX). Annual mean concentrations of PM2.5 between 7,40 +/- 3,96 microgram m-3 e 17,4 +/- 7,38 microgram m-3 were measured during the years 2015 and 2018, which were lower than the intermediateair quality standard established by CONAMA, with the highest annual averages recorded during 2016, the year in which the Olympic Games were held. In addition, toxicological tests were performed with C. elegans to evaluate the effects of exposure to particulate matter (PM) in the different size fractions. Results of the chemical analysis showed that PM at all collection sites consists mainly of ionic species such Cl- , NO3 - , Na+ and SO4 2- and elements such as V, Ni, Cu, Cd, Sn and Pb, being determined only significant variations (p less than 0,05) in the concentrations of SO4 2- , NO3 - , Na+ , Cu, and Sn, between the studied periods. Based on the results of the SEM-EDX analysis, atmospheric particles were classified according to their morphology – Soot, spherical, biological and minerals- and according to their elemental composition – particles with sulfur, chlorine and iron content. Finally, toxic effects were observed by exposure C. elegans organisms to PM10 and PM2.5, altering physiological parameters (e.g growth and reproduction) and promoting antioxidant mechanisms responses, as a result of oxidative stress generated by compounds present in the PM.