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Indian ocean biogeochemical processes and ecological variability
Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Geophysical Monograph Series, Volume 185.Indian Ocean Biogeochemical Processes and Ecological Variability provides a synthesis of current knowledge on Indian Ocean biogeochemistry and ecology and an introduction to new concepts and topical paradigm challenges. It also reports on the development of more extensive/frequent observational capacity being deployed in the Indian Ocean. This represents the first collection of syntheses that emphasize a basin-wide perspective, and the contributing authors include some of the most esteemed oceanographers and Indian Ocean experts in the world. The volume is derived from invited plenary talks that were presented at the initial Sustained Indian Ocean Biogeochemistry and Ecosystem Research (SIBER) workshop held at the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) in Goa, India, in October 2006. The volume discusses The overlying physical processes set by monsoonal forcing and how these control biological production and variability Nutrient cycling and limitation Pelagic carbon cycling and air-sea exchange Benthic biogeochemistry and ecology The impact of climate and human activities on biogeochemistry and ecosystems. The readership for this book will consist of academic and governmental researchers interested in exploring how oceanographic, atmospheric, and hydrological processes combine to establish the environmental setting that supports and drives the pelagic system and which are especially relevant to understanding the complex biogeochemical and ecological interactions in the Indian Ocean.
eBook
Impact of Marine Chemical Ecology Research on the Discovery and Development of New Pharmaceuticals
Diverse ecologically important metabolites, such as allelochemicals, infochemicals and volatile organic chemicals, are involved in marine organismal interactions. Chemically mediated interactions between intra- and interspecific organisms can have a significant impact on community organization, population structure and ecosystem functioning. Advances in analytical techniques, microscopy and genomics are providing insights on the chemistry and functional roles of the metabolites involved in such interactions. This review highlights the targeted translational value of several marine chemical ecology-driven research studies and their impact on the sustainable discovery of novel therapeutic agents. These chemical ecology-based approaches include activated defense, allelochemicals arising from organismal interactions, spatio-temporal variations of allelochemicals and phylogeny-based approaches. In addition, innovative analytical techniques used in the mapping of surface metabolites as well as in metabolite translocation within marine holobionts are summarized. Chemical information related to the maintenance of the marine symbioses and biosyntheses of specialized compounds can be harnessed for biomedical applications, particularly in microbial fermentation and compound production. Furthermore, the impact of climate change on the chemical ecology of marine organisms—especially on the production, functionality and perception of allelochemicals—and its implications on drug discovery efforts will be presented.
Journal Article
From marine origin to therapeutics: the antitumor potential of marine algae-derived compounds
Authors would like to acknowledge the financial support of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through Strategic Projects UID/MAR/04292/2013 and UID/Multi/04046/2013 granted to MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre and BioISI - BioSystems and Integrative Sciences Institute, respectively, through Red2Discovery Project (PTDC/MAR-BIO/6149/2014), cofinanced by COMPETE (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016791), and through Oncologia de Precisão: Terapias e Tecnologias Inovadoras project (POINT4PAC) (SAICTPAC/0019/2015 - LISBOA-01-0145-FEDER-016405). The authors also wish to acknowledge the Integrated Programme of SR&TD Smart Valorization of Endogenous Marine Biological Resources Under a Changing Climate (reference Centro-01-0145-FEDER000018), co-funded by Centro 2020 program, Portugal 2020, European Union, through the European Regional Development Fund. CA, SP, and JS are financial supported by a grant from FCT (SFRH/BD/97764/2013, SFRH/BD/96203/2013, and (SFRH/BD/103255/2014, respectively).
Journal Article
Metabolomics on the study of marine organisms
BackgroundMarine ecosystems are hosts to a vast array of organisms, being among the most richly biodiverse locations on the planet. The study of these ecosystems is very important, as they are not only a significant source of food for the world but also have, in recent years, become a prolific source of compounds with therapeutic potential. Studies of aspects of marine life have involved diverse fields of marine science, and the use of metabolomics as an experimental approach has increased in recent years. As part of the “omics” technologies, metabolomics has been used to deepen the understanding of interactions between marine organisms and their environment at a metabolic level and to discover new metabolites produced by these organisms.Aim of reviewThis review provides an overview of the use of metabolomics in the study of marine organisms. It also explores the use of metabolomics tools common to other fields such as plants and human metabolomics that could potentially contribute to marine organism studies. It deals with the entire process of a metabolomic study, from sample collection considerations, metabolite extraction, analytical techniques, and data analysis. It also includes an overview of recent applications of metabolomics in fields such as marine ecology and drug discovery and future perspectives of its use in the study of marine organisms.Key scientific concepts of reviewThe review covers all the steps involved in metabolomic studies of marine organisms including, collection, extraction methods, analytical tools, statistical analysis, and dereplication. It aims to provide insight into all aspects that a newcomer to the field should consider when undertaking marine metabolomics.
Journal Article
Chemically rich seaweeds poison corals when not controlled by herbivores
Coral reefs are in dramatic global decline, with seaweeds commonly replacing corals. It is unclear, however, whether seaweeds harm corals directly or colonize opportunistically following their decline and then suppress coral recruitment. In the Caribbean and tropical Pacific, we show that, when protected from herbivores, ∼40 to 70% of common seaweeds cause bleaching and death of coral tissue when in direct contact. For seaweeds that harmed coral tissues, their lipid-soluble extracts also produced rapid bleaching. Coral bleaching and mortality was limited to areas of direct contact with seaweeds or their extracts. These patterns suggest that allelopathic seaweed-coral interactions can be important on reefs lacking herbivore control of seaweeds, and that these interactions involve lipid-soluble metabolites transferred via direct contact. Seaweeds were rapidly consumed when placed on a Pacific reef protected from fishing but were left intact or consumed at slower rates on an adjacent fished reef, indicating that herbivory will suppress seaweeds and lower frequency of allelopathic damage to corals if reefs retain intact food webs. With continued removal of herbivores from coral reefs, seaweeds are becoming more common. This occurence will lead to increasing frequency of seaweed-coral contacts, increasing allelopathic suppression of remaining corals, and continuing decline of reef corals.
Journal Article
A Review of “Polychaeta” Chemicals and their Possible Ecological Role
Despite the many publications concerning the isolation of substances and the many reviews of marine natural products, some groups of organisms remain poorly studied, including “Polychaeta”. In response, this review covers articles published through December 2016 that address marine natural products produced from polychaetes, with a focus on antipredatory strategies, competitors, fouling, and pathogens. A total of 121 compounds were isolated from 1934 to 2016, which includes halogenated aromatics, proteins, amino acids and Lumazine derivatives most notably—with a defensive function were found in the literature, most frequently in the families Sabellidae, Terebellidae, Glyceridae, and Nereididae. The period of highest discovery of natural products in defensive actions for the group was the 2000s. Polychaetes were addressed in 26 revisions of the total 51 articles analyzed and are less reported than other marine invertebrates such as sponges, cnidarians, mollusks, and tunicates. In sum, the present review provides a basis for future research on the marine chemical ecology of polychaetes.
Journal Article
Chemical ecology in aquatic systems
In recent years it has become increasingly clear that chemical interactions play a fundamental role in aquatic habitats and have far-reaching evolutionary and ecological consequences. A plethora of studies have shown that aquatic organisms from most taxa and functional groups respond to minute concentrations of chemical substances released by other organisms. However, our knowledge of this ‘chemical network’ is still negligible. Chemical interactions can be divided into two larger sub-areas based on the function of the chemical substance. First, there are interactions where chemical substances are toxic to other organisms and are used as a defence against consumers (including both herbivores and predators) or a weapon against competitors (allelopathy). Second, chemical substances may be used as a source for information on the environment; for example: how can I find the optimal habitat, the best food, the nicest partner, and avoid being eaten? Aquatic organisms are able to detect and respond to extremely low concentrations of chemical cues to answer all these questions. The book aims at connecting these intriguing chemical interactions with traditional knowledge of organism interactions. It covers a wide range of studies, both plant and animal, from different geographic regions and habitats — pelagic as well as benthic. Most of the chemical interactions are similar in freshwater and marine habitats and this book therefore strives at integrating work on both systems.
eBook
Volatile secondary metabolites as aposematic olfactory signals and defensive weapons in aquatic environments
Olfaction is considered a distance sense; hence, aquatic olfaction is thought to be mediated only by molecules dissolved in water. Here, we challenge this view by showing that shrimp and fish can recognize the presence of hydrophobic olfactory cues by a “tactile” form of chemoreception. We found that odiferous furanosesquiterpenes protect both the Mediterranean octocoral Maasella edwardsi and its specialist predator, the nudibranch gastropod Tritonia striata, from potential predators. Food treated with the terpenes elicited avoidance responses in the cooccurring shrimp Palaemon elegans. Rejection was also induced in the shrimp by the memory recall of postingestive aversive effects (vomiting), evoked by repeatedly touching the food with chemosensory mouthparts. Consistent with their emetic properties once ingested, the compounds were highly toxic to brine shrimp. Further experiments on the zebrafish showed that this vertebrate aquatic model also avoids food treated with one of the terpenes, after having experienced gastrointestinal malaise. The fish refused the food after repeatedly touching it with their mouths. The compounds studied thus act simultaneously as (i) toxins, (ii) avoidance-learning inducers, and (iii) aposematic odorant cues. Although they produce a characteristic smell when exposed to air, the compounds are detected by direct contact with the emitter in aquatic environments and are perceived at high doses that are not compatible with their transport inwater. The mouthparts of both the shrimp and the fish have thus been shown to act as “aquatic noses,” supporting a substantial revision of the current definition of the chemical senses based upon spatial criteria.
Journal Article
Chemical Ecology of the Benthic Dinoflagellate Genus Ostreopsis: Review of Progress and Future Directions
The genus Ostreopsis includes some species that produce high biomass blooms and/or synthesize toxic compounds that can be transferred through the marine food webs or aerosolized causing ecological, human health and socio-economic impacts. Ostreopsis species are increasing their biogeographic distribution from tropical to more temperate waters and causing recurrent blooms in certain coastal areas, thus constituting an emerging concern worldwide. The proliferation capacity of Ostreopsis is due to a complex and poorly understood combination of multiple factors, and may be a paradigm of chemical ecology reviewed here. A first section summarizes the basic knowledge on the different Ostreopsis species, the toxins they produce and the described foodborne and airborne effects of Ostreopsis toxins on humans. Secondly, direct and indirect interactions between Ostreopsis species and their environment are reviewed. Mucopolysaccharide substances produced by the cells to attach to different substrates appear to be a key element on the chemical ecology and requires further study. However, this research is challenged by technical limitations to conduct ecologically realistic and harmonized studies where organisms can be in direct contact with Ostreopsis cells, their mucus and/or the released extracellular toxic compounds. Understanding the transfer mechanisms of these substances within the food web, potentially affecting humans is critical and requires further study with new analytical tools. Still, the progress in knowledge achieved in the last years, combined with experimental and field studies using cutting edge methods will facilitate to address the open questions on the chemical ecology of Ostreopsis and understand its bloom dynamics now, and under future climate and anthropogenic change scenarios.
Journal Article