Molecular and genetic advances to understanding evolution and biodiversity in the polar regions.
In September 2011, Aberdeen (UK) hosted the World Conference on Marine Biodiversity (WCMB). Within this Conference, the multidisciplinary international Science Research Programme (SRP) of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) “Evolution and Biodiversity in the Antarctic — The Response of Life to Change (EBA)” was granted a generous platform, which included a full-day Side Meeting on Advances in Evolution and Biodiversity in Marine Antarctic Environments. To mark the importance of this subject, as an outcome of the WCMB we decided to promote an EBA Special Issue of Marine Genomics, focussing on marine biodiversity in the polar regions. The contributions in this issue address the role of environmental change, variability and extreme events in the biological processes of marine organisms, including subjects such as phylogeography, phylogeny, phenotypic plasticity and molecular/ physiological adaptations in the vertebrates and invertebrates of both polar oceans. Polar habitats influence the pace and nature of global environmental changes, and respond to these changes in an integrated system of biologically modulated connections. In contrast with the terrestrial environment, Antarctic marine biodiversity is high. Perhaps the most pristine region on Earth, the Antarctic marine realm is fragile with undescribed organisms, continuous speciation and high endemism. “Polar amplification” of global anthropogenic warming causes acceleration of glacier retreat, sea-ice thinning and loss, and permafrost degradation, and raises the possibility that human influence may cause a major extinction event over the next 50 years. There is unprecedented urgency and importance to better understand the patterns, diversity and controlling processes of organisms, ecosystems and habitats in the Antarctic. This requires not only knowledge of physical and ecological processes, but also the physiological and molecular responses to ecosystem changes, as genomics underly organisms' ability (or their lack of it) to adapt and survive. Better knowledge of Antarctic marine communities at their various levels of organisation (molecular, cellular, individual, population, etc.) may reveal crucial warnings of the impacts of current environmental changes. The largest challenge facing mankind today is the management of the Earth System to ensure a sustainable future. The concept of a “sustainable world” is strongly linked to that of biodiversity. All life becomes possible because biodiversity makes the planet what it is. Biodiversity depends on the diversity of genes, individuals, species, habitats, as well as their interconnections and relationships. Long-term warming, ocean acidification, and other anthropogenic impacts may present major challenges to the survival and biodiveristy of Antarctic marine communities, as well as their terrestrial and limnetic counterparts. Present patterns of biodiversity are a consequence of processes operating on physiological, ecological and