ALBERT

Description: Domoic acid, a neurotoxin to vertebrates predominantly produced by the diatom Pseudo-nitzschia has been suggested to serve as an organic ligand. By binding iron and copper, it could increase their solubility and bioavailability. Domoic acid has to be released by the cells to serve this function and thus occur dissolved in sea water. Samples were pre-concentrated and desalted using solid-phase extraction, a procedure commonly applied for dissolved organic matter. Dissolved domoic acid was quantified in the East Atlantic, where it occurred ubiquitously, especially in the ocean surface. The maximum domoic acid concentration measured was 173 pmol L-1 and the average domoic acid carbon yield was 7.7 ppm. Both, carbon yield and dissolved domoic acid concentration, decreased with increasing water depth. Samples were taken during the cruise PS73 (ANT-XXV) on RV Polarstern. The extraction efficiency of domoic acid was 91%. The detection limit for solid-phase extractable domoic acid (DA-SPE) was 10 pmol L-1 and limit of quantification was 26 pmol L-1. Domoic acid concentrations below the limit of detection are marked as 〈LOD and concentrations below limit of quantification are marked as 〈LOQ in the data set.

Description: The strain of Alexandrium ostenfeldii was isolated from a single cell from Ouwerkerkse Kreek.

Description: We investigated optimal conditions for characterization of bioactivity of lytic compound(s) excreted by Alexandrium tamarense based on a cell-bioassay system. Allelochemical response of the cryptophyte Rhodomonas salina indicated the presence oflytic compound(s) in a reliable and reproducible way and allows for quantification of this lytic effect. The parameters tested were the incubation time of putatively lytic extracts or fractions with the target organism R. salina, different techniques for cell harvest from A. tamarense cultures and the optimal harvest time. A three hour incubation time was found to be optimal to yield a rapid response while accurately estimating effective concentration (ECso) values. Harvest of A. tamarense cultures by filtration resulted in loss of lytic activity in most cases and centrifugation was most efficient in terms of recovery of lytic activity. Maximum yield of extracellular lytic activity of A. tamarense cultures was achieved in the stationary phase. Such optimized bioassay guided fractionation techniques are a valuable asset in the isolation and eventual stmctural elucidation of the unknown lytic substances.

Description: Members of the marine dinoflagellate genus Alexandrium are known to exude allelochemicals, unrelated to well-known neurotoxins (PSP-toxins, spirolides), with negative effects on other phytoplankton and marine grazers. Physico/chemical characterization of extracellular lytic compounds of A. tamarense, quantified by Rhodomonas salina bioassay, showed that the lytic activity, and hence presumably the compounds were stable over wide ranges of temperatures and pH and were refractory to bacterial degradation. Two distinct lytic fractions were collected by reversed-phase solid-phase extraction. The more hydrophilic fraction accounted for about 2% of the whole lytic activity of the A. tamarense culture supernatant, while the less hydrophilic one accounted for about 98% of activity. Although temporal stability of the compounds is high, substantial losses were evident during purification. Lytic activity was best removed from aqueous phase with chloroform-methanol (3:1). A “pseudo-loss” of lytic activity in undisturbed and low-concentrated samples and high activity of an emulsion between aqueous and n-hexane phase after liquid-liquid partition are strong evidence for the presence of amphipathic compounds. Lytic activity in the early fraction of gel permeation chromatography and lack of activity after 5 kD ultrafiltration indicate that the lytic agents form large aggregates or macromolecular complexes.

Description: Certain allelochemicals of the marine dinoflagellate Alexandrium tamarense cause lysis of a broad spectrum of target protist cells but the lytic mechanism is poorly defined. We first hypothesized that membrane sterols serve as molecular targets of these lytic compounds, and that differences in sterol composition among donor and target cells may cause insensitivity of Alexandrium and sensitivity of targets to lytic compounds. We investigated Ca2+ influx after application of lytic fractions to a model cell line PC12 derived from a pheochromocytoma of the rat adrenal medulla to establish how the lytic compounds affect ion flux associated with lysis of target membranes. The lytic compounds increased permeability of the cell membrane for Ca2+ ions even during blockade of Ca2+ channels with cadmium. Results of a liposome assay suggested that the lytic compounds did not lyse such target membranes non-specifically by means of detergent-like activity. Analysis of sterol composition of isolates of A. tamarense and of five target protistan species showed that both lytic and non-lytic A. tamarense strains contain cholesterol and dinosterol as major sterols, whereas none of the other tested species contain dinosterol. Adding sterols and phosphatidylcholine to a lysis bioassay with the cryptophyte Rhodomonas salina for evaluation of competitive binding indicated that the lytic compounds possessed apparent high affinity for free sterols and phosphatidylcholine. Lysis of protistan target cells was dose-dependently reduced by adding various sterols or phosphatidylcholine. For three tested sterols, the lytic compounds showed highest affinity towards cholesterol followed by ergosterol and brassicasterol. Cholesterol comprised a higher percentage of total sterols in plasma membrane fractions of A. tamarense than in corresponding whole cell fractions. We conclude therefore that although the molecular targets of the lytic compounds are likely to involve sterol components of membranes, A. tamarense must have a complex self-protective mechanism that still needs to be addressed.

Description: The data represent species counts (cells L-1) of the three AZA-producing dinoflagellate species Azadinium spinosum, Az. poporum and Amphidoma languida (all members of the taxonomic family Amphidomataceae) of water samples taken during in total six different field expeditions on several research vessels (RV Heincke, RV Uthörn, RV Polarstern) and on in total five stationary sampling stations (Scapa Flow/Scotland, Cuxhaven/Germany, Helgoland/Germany, Wilhelmshaven/Germany, Sylt/Germany) between 2015 and 2019. The water samples have been taken using Niskin bottles (on research vessels attached to a CTD). After DNA extraction, the species cell numbers have been calculated by quantitative PCR (qPCR) analysis using respective standard curves. These samples gained from different geographical areas in the eastern North Atlantic have been analyzed as part of the RIPAZA Project (funded by the German BMBF; in cooperation with the Third Institute of Oceanography, Xiamen/China) and the results are presented and discussed in the doctoral thesis of Stephan Wietkamp (Suppl.Tab.S6, Suppl.Tab.S7). Aim of the project and especially of this data set was to provide first reference data on the biogeography (geographical distribution and seasonality) of toxigenic Amphidomataceae in the eastern North Atlantic.

Description: At each study station, surface water temperature (±0.2°C) and salinity (±0.06) were measured in situ by triplicate readings with a multiparameter probe (Horiba U-10, Japan). Using Niskin bottles, surface water samples were collected for quantification of plankton and estimations of chlorophyll a. For the former, 250 ml were fixed with Lugol's solution (1% final concentration) and kept in the dark until analysis under the microscope, while for chlorophyll a, a volume of 200–250 mL was filtrated onboard through filter GF/C and kept at -20°C.

Description: Arctic regions have experienced pronounced biological and biophysical transformations as a result of global change processes over the last several decades. Current hypotheses propose an elevated impact of those environmental changes on the biodiversity, community composition and metabolic processes of species. The effects on ecosystem function and services, particularly when invasive or toxigenic harmful species become dominant, can be expressed over a wide range of temporal and spatial scales in plankton communities. Our study focused on the comparison of molecular biodiversity of three size-fractions (micro-, nano-, picoplankton) in the coastal pelagic zone of West Greenland and their association with environmental parameters. Molecular diversity was assessed via parallel amplicon sequencing the 28S rRNA hypervariable D1/D2 region. We showed that biodiversity distribution within the area of Uummannaq Fjord, Vaigat Strait and Disko Bay differed markedly within and among size-fractions. In general, we observed a higher diversity within the picoplankton size fraction compared to the nano- and microplankton. In multidimensional scaling analysis, community composition of all three size fractions correlated with cell size, silicate and phosphate, chlorophyll a (chl a) and dinophysistoxin (DTX). Individually, each size fraction community composition also correlated with other different environmental parameters, i.e. temperature and nitrate. We observed a more homogeneous community of the picoplankton across all stations compared to the larger size classes, despite different prevailing environmental conditions of the sampling areas. This suggests that habitat niche occupation for larger-celled species may lead to higher functional trait plasticity expressed as an enhanced range of phenotypes, whereas smaller organisms may compensate for lower potential plasticity with higher diversity. The presence of recently identified toxigenic harmful algal bloom (HAB) species (such as Alexandrium fundyense and A. ostenfeldii) in the area points out the potential risk for this vulnerable ecosystem in a changing world.

Description: Data presented here were collected during the cruise UT201606 (Project HAB DK/Limfjord) with the RV Uthörn from Bremerhaven to Bremerhaven (June 13, 2016 to June 30, 2016) , with station work in the German Bight, the Limfjord and the Baltic Sea. In total, 44 vertical CTD-hauls were conducted. The CTD system used was a Sea-Bird Electronics Inc. SBE 19plus, attached to a SBE 55 Carousel Water Sampler containing 6 x 4-liter bottles. The system was equipped with: single temperature and conductivity probe (SBE 7245), a pressure sensor (Digiquartz), and a fluoroscence sensor (Wetlabs FLNTU, SN 0773). The sensors were pre-calibrated by the manufacturers. The data were recorded with the Seasave 7.22.2 software and processed using SeaBird SBE Data Processing software. Data were despiked, and also visually checked. The ship position was derived from the shipboard GPS-system. The time zone is given in UTC.

Description: The occurrence of harmful algal blooms (HABs) is a global problem, and particularly in San Jorge Gulf (SJG), Argentina, which supports important fisheries, HABs represent a risk to human health. We studied the diversity and distribution of toxigenic dinoflagellates in the SJG using toxin detection and quantification, and assessed the connections between cell densities, toxins, and oceanographic parameters. Phytoplankton net samples were taken for microscopic and liquid chromatography-​tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MSMS) analyses during an expedition aboard R/V Coriolis II in February 2014. Solid phase adsorption toxin tracking (SPATT) devices were also deployed to determine the presence of dissolved lipophilic toxins in seawater. Toxigenic dinoflagellate species and associated toxins showed different distribution patterns in the north and the south SJG. Protoceratium reticulatum and Dinophysis acuminata, together with yessotoxin and pectenotoxins, were predominantly detected in the northern SJG, mainly associated with low-nutrient, warmer waters. By contrast, Alexandrium catenella and paralytic shellfish toxins showed the highest relative abundances in the southern SJG, associated with high-nutrient, low-temperature waters. Cellular toxin content was also differently affected by environmental parameters, highlighting the complexity of HABs in this area. Spirolides were detected by SPATT for the first time in the SJG, suggesting the occurrence of A. ostenfeldii.