Showing papers in "European Journal of Phycology in 2017"
TL;DR: There are some fundamental and very significant hurdles yet to overcome in order to achieve the potential contributions that seaweed cultivation may provide the world, and an outline for future needs is provided in the anticipation that phycologists around the world will rise to the challenge.
Abstract: The use of seaweeds has a long history, as does the cultivation of a select and relatively small group of species. This review presents several aspects of seaweed production, such as an update on t...
420 citations
TL;DR: Scaling up algal cultures to the very large volumes required for commercial production is a complex task and requires skilled and experienced personnel and methods and protocols to deal with these can only be developed at the large-scale.
Abstract: Scaling up algal cultures to the very large volumes required for commercial production is a complex task and requires skilled and experienced personnel. First it is necessary to consider how to opt...
127 citations
TL;DR: As the popularity of seaweeds increases and the use of less traditional species with novel applications comes to the fore, it is critically important to make certain that the sustainability of the resource is ensured given the increased pressures of harvesting.
Abstract: Macroalgae have played an important role in coastal communities for centuries. In the past, they have been harvested and gathered from shorelines around the world for traditional uses such as food,...
120 citations
TL;DR: The aim of this review is to highlight the advances in the use of various strategies to enhance production of algal biomass and lipids for biofuel feedstock.
Abstract: Microalgae have enormous potential as feedstock for biofuel production compared with other sources, due to their high areal productivity, relatively low environmental impact, and low impact on food...
85 citations
TL;DR: There is considerable potential for increased drawdown of CO2 by SABs, though its effectiveness in amelioration of atmospheric CO2 increase will depend on the fate of the resulting biomass.
Abstract: Human activities are having increasingly negative impacts on the natural environment. The rapidly expanding human population has led to a shortage of resources and the ability to support the growin...
75 citations
TL;DR: The role of women in seaweed aquaculture in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO, including Africa and India) and South-East Asia is detail, with the commitment of women as the driving force of the seaweed industry, adding value to seaweeds, especially in the WIO.
Abstract: In most developing countries, the majority of people involved with seaweed farming are women. Their immense contribution to the industry has been widely demonstrated and evaluated in successful exa...
50 citations
TL;DR: Two speciose genera are recognized: Vertebrata and Melanothamnus, both of which are distinguished from other members of the Polysiphonieae by synapomorphic characters, the emergence of which could have provided evolutionarily selective advantages for these two lineages.
Abstract: Polysiphonia is the largest genus of red algae, and several schemes subdividing it into smaller taxa have been proposed since its original description. Most of these proposals were not generally accepted, and currently the tribe Polysiphonieae consists of the large genus Polysiphonia (190 species), the segregate genus Neosiphonia (43 species) and 13 smaller genera (< 10 species each). In this paper, phylogenetic relationships of the tribe Polysiphonieae are analysed, with particular emphasis on the genera Carradoriella, Fernandosiphonia, Melanothamnus, Neosiphonia, Polysiphonia sensu stricto, Streblocladia and Vertebrata. We evaluated the consistency of 14 selected morphological characters in the identified clades. Based on molecular phylogenetic (rbcL and 18S genes) and morphological evidence, two speciose genera are recognized: Vertebrata (including the type species of the genera Ctenosiphonia, Enelittosiphonia, Boergeseniella and Brongniartella) and Melanothamnus (including the type species of ...
49 citations
TL;DR: An overview of the literature describing the potential of cyanobacterial metabolites as an alternative source for sunscreens and moisturizers is presented.
Abstract: The recognition that ultraviolet radiation has harmful effects on the skin has led to the commercial development of inorganic and synthetic organic UV filters that can reduce the negative effects of exposure to sunlight. In addition, moisturizing chemicals are extensively used in personal care products to improve the ability of skin to retain water. Whilst current UV filter and moisturizing chemicals have clear beneficial qualities, they may also have adverse effects such as contact sensitivity, oestrogenicity and even tumorigenic effects on human skin. Furthermore, the accumulation of these chemicals in the aquatic environment could be potentially harmful. Consequently, there is interest in exploiting safer alternatives derived from biological sources, especially from photosynthetic organisms such as cyanobacteria which have developed mechanisms for coping with high UV irradiation and desiccation. In order to overcome the detrimental effects of UV radiation, these microorganisms produce UV screen...
48 citations
TL;DR: There is a considerable body of literature on the bladed Bangiales in China, but much of it is Chinese and in obscure publications, so it points to the need for molecular taxonomy of Chinese material to document species diversity and distribution, particularly as it includes the wild stocks for seaweed cultivation.
Abstract: In this paper, we review cultural history, mariculture and taxonomic work to date for Porphyra sensu lato (bladed Bangiales) in China. The bladed Bangiales are a red seaweed group with high species biodiversity and economic value. In China, species occur along the length of the coast and are highly integrated into the country’s culture. Chinese people have used the bladed Bangiales as food and pharmaceuticals for about 1700 years with many references to these seaweeds in ancient books. The mariculture of bladed Bangiales in China also has a long history and an industry has been established based on some species, notably Pyropia yezoensis. The scientific study of the taxonomy of the bladed Bangiales in China began in the late 1920s and to date, based on morphological identification, 25 species and five varieties have been recorded for China, of which 12 species are considered to be endemic to the country. The majority of species have distribution data showing evidence of possible changes due to inc...
43 citations
TL;DR: It is clear that algae are important, via the biological pump, in decreasing the steady state atmospheric and ocean surface CO2, and thus decreasing radiative forcing, a reduction enhanced by algal increases in albedo.
Abstract: Anthropogenic inputs are increasing the CO2 content of the atmosphere, and the CO2 and total inorganic C in the surface ocean and, to a lesser degree, the deep ocean. The greenhouse effect of the i...
41 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that implementation of molecular data in the taxonomy of Achnanthidium will be essential to solve the taxonomic problems associated with this group, eventually resulting in a better understanding of the biogeography and niche differentiation of different species belonging to the A. minutissimum complex.
Abstract: Recent morphology-based investigations of freshwater Arctic diatoms suggest that many species remain to be discovered, reflecting a unique polar flora. During a survey of the freshwater diatom flora of northern Billefjorden, including the Petuniabukta fjord region (Spitsbergen), several morphodemes belonging to the Achnanthidium minutissimum species complex were recorded. Molecular phylogenies based on rbcL, 28S and 18S sequences, including single cells from Canada and strains from Marion Island (sub-Antarctica) and GenBank revealed the presence of 12 distinct A. minutissimum complex lineages, of which three contained strains from Spitsbergen. One Arctic lineage is described as a new species. Achnanthidium digitatum sp. nov. is morphologically characterized by narrow, linear to only slightly lanceolate valves and usually two areolae per stria. The two remaining Arctic lineages are in need of a more complete morphological and molecular comparison with other representatives of the A. minutissimum complex to clarify their taxonomic identity. It is argued that implementation of molecular data in the taxonomy of Achnanthidium will be essential to solve the taxonomic problems associated with this group, eventually resulting in a better understanding of the biogeography and niche differentiation of different species belonging to the A. minutissimum complex. Ideally, this should be based on more variable genes than the currently widely used 18S, which does not have a species level resolution in the A. minutissimum complex.
TL;DR: This review focuses on molecular taxonomic advances in the cultivated red algae with the highest commercial value globally: Eucheuma and Kappaphycus, Porphyra sensu lato and Gracilaria.
Abstract: The cultivation of red seaweeds for food (nori), agar and carrageenans is the basis of a valuable industry. However, taxonomic knowledge of these cultivated seaweeds and their wild relatives has not kept pace with advances in molecular systematics despite the fundamental importance of being able to identify commercially important species and strains, discover cryptic and endemic taxa and recognize non-native species with potentially damaging diseases and epiphytes. This review focuses on molecular taxonomic advances in the cultivated red algae with the highest commercial value globally: Eucheuma and Kappaphycus, Porphyra sensu lato and Gracilaria. All three groups are similarly taxonomically challenging: speciose, morphologically plastic, with poorly resolved species boundaries. Eucheuma and Kappaphycus are frequently misidentified and the molecular markers cox2-3 spacer, cox1 and RuBisCO spacer have helped in understanding phylogenetic relationships and identifying new species and haplotypes. In ...
TL;DR: It was found that Eucheuma cottonii wastes have better thermal stability, higher crude fibre content, lower moisture content and similar density to the raw Euc hemline cottonii, which suggests that these biomass wastes have good potential as renewable filler material.
Abstract: The aim of this paper was to examine the characteristics of Eucheuma cottonii waste in order to analyse its potential as renewable material. The morphology of Eucheuma cottonii (raw and wastes) was investigated through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the thermal behaviour through thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and the physical properties through FT-IR, XRD, gas pycnometer, particle size analyser, water absorption and moisture content analysis. The chemical compositions were determined by using acid detergent fibre (ADF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent lignin (ADL) analysis. It was found that Eucheuma cottonii wastes have better thermal stability, higher crude fibre content, lower moisture content and similar density to the raw Eucheuma cottonii, which suggests that these biomass wastes have good potential as renewable filler material.
TL;DR: Results are consistent with the P strategy of storage prioritization over growth rate, and demonstrate differences between the strains in the C:P ratio under P-limitation, indicating variation in P storage.
Abstract: The toxic cyanobacterium Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii can form large blooms in freshwater systems, causing water quality problems. The availability of the essential macronutrient phosphorus (P), ...
TL;DR: A DNA barcoding study was carried out on maerl-forming coralline algae using the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase 1 gene, CO1, and the plastid gene, psbA, on field specimens from Falmouth and Oban together with herbarium specimens from the Natural History Museum, UK and the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, USA, revealing the presence of a new species.
Abstract: Due to the high plasticity of coralline algae, identification based on morphology alone can be extremely difficult, so studies increasingly use a combination of morphology and genetics in species delimitation. A DNA barcoding study was carried out on maerl-forming coralline algae using the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase 1 gene, CO1, and the plastid gene, psbA, on field specimens from Falmouth and Oban together with herbarium specimens from the Natural History Museum, UK, and the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, USA. Results revealed the presence in the north of Britain of a new species, Lithothamnion erinaceum Melbourne & J. Brodie, sp. nov., which was previously misidentified as Lithothamnion glaciale. The results also indicated that Lithothamnion lemoineae, which had earlier been recorded from Britain, was not present. One of the biggest concerns at present is how organisms will respond to climate change and ocean acidification, and it is imperative that investigations are put on a firm ta...
TL;DR: The results suggest that H. circularisquama, K. mikimotoi and A. tamiyavanichii produce haemolytic agents with distinct characteristics, whereas C. marina and C. antiqua have an extremely potent ability to produce ROS.
Abstract: Based on haemolytic activity and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production of Chattonella marina, Chattonella antiqua, Heterocapsa circularisquama, Alexandrium tamiyavanichii and Karenia mikimotoi, ...
TL;DR: Analysis of genetic diversity of the mitochondrial markers reveals that even though Australian populations contain a much higher haplotype richness, European populations are also fairly diverse, and these somewhat counterintuitive results could be indicative of a more complicated introduction history.
Abstract: Dictyota cyanoloma has recently been described from the Mediterranean Sea and Macaronesia but doubt had arisen as to whether this species was truly native in Europe. The species is mainly found on non-natural substrata (harbour walls, marinas, boat hulls, etc.), strongly suggesting that it is an introduction. Molecular sequence information from historical herbarium samples proves the presence of D. cyanoloma in the Adriatic Sea as early as 1935. Since approximately the year 2000, however, the number of records as well as the geographic range of the species has expanded significantly. The present-day distribution of D. cyanoloma occupies most of the Mediterranean Sea, Macaronesia, NW Africa and southern Portugal, but recent records from Galicia and SW England (Falmouth, Cornwall) indicate that the species is rapidly expanding northward. Collections from Australia demonstrated that the species is also present from Perth in Western Australia, over much of the southern Australian coastline up to Minni...
TL;DR: The greater antifouling defence of invasive vs. native Sargassum species indicates a selective trait that may contribute to the invasion success of S. muticum.
Abstract: The invasiveness of algal species can be facilitated by chemo-ecological traits that allow the establishment of invasive species in a highly competitive environment. Anti-bacterial, anti-quorum sensing, anti-diatom and anti-larval properties of the invasive brown macroalga Sargassum muticum and three native Sargassum species from Oman waters were compared in laboratory and field experiments to assess whether these traits have the potential to facilitate the invasion process. Only the extract of S. muticum inhibited bacterial growth of four marine bacterial strains and quorum sensing in the reporter strain Chromobacterium violaceum CV017. Settlement, growth and survival of the diatom Cylindrotheca closterium and larvae of the bryozoan Bugula neritina were significantly inhibited by all Sargassum extracts in laboratory experiments. However, crude extracts of S. muticum had the strongest antifouling effect. Natural tissue-level concentrations of S. muticum extract reduced diatom density to about 20% ...
TL;DR: The role of microbial biofilms in infection, and the antimicrobial chemical diversity of marine macroalgae and their associated microbiomes are reviewed, offering great potential for the isolation and identification of novel compounds and strategies to counteract the rise and dissemination of AMR.
Abstract: This article reviews the role of microbial biofilms in infection, and the antimicrobial chemical diversity of marine macroalgae and their associated microbiomes. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) repr...
TL;DR: This work demonstrates that C. reinhardtii has all of the genes necessary for the biosynthesis of ergosterol and 7-dehydroporiferasterol and that this alga uses the higher plant pathway to make a sterol normally associated with fungi.
Abstract: Ergosterol and 7-dehydroporiferasterol are the predominant sterols in the membranes of the alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii Dangeard. Ergosterol is primarily found in most fungi, which produce their end-product sterols by way of the intermediate lanosterol. In contrast, plants rarely make ergosterol and plant sterols are made via the intermediate cycloartenol. The cycloartenol-lanosterol bifurcation has been used as a means to evolutionarily categorize species based on their sterol production. Use of bioinformatics has revealed that the green alga, C. reinhardtii is probably producing sterols using a pathway very similar to that of higher plants. The Chlamydomonas genome was searched for genes that encoded proteins exhibiting high similarity to sterol biosynthetic proteins in the higher plant Arabidopsis thaliana or the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genes with the greatest similarity were chosen and annotated. To establish whether these genes were expressed, the presence of their transcripts was d...
TL;DR: There is no single morphological feature common to all of them that can be used to diagnose the group and differentiate it from the various hantzschioid lineages that are separate from true Hantzschia and currently placed in e.g. Nitzschia or CymbellonitzSchia.
Abstract: A previously unknown member of the Bacillariaceae was discovered almost simultaneously in four different brackish coastal wetlands on the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of the Iberian Peninsula. It appears to tolerate a wide range of salinities but was never common in samples where it occurred. The frustules were consistently hantzschioid (i.e. with the raphe systems always on the same side of the frustule) and the valve outline was asymmetrical about the apical plane, two features that have until recently been considered characteristic of Hantzschia. Molecular phylogenies based on rbcL and LSU rDNA indicated, however, that the new species does not belong in Hantzschia but among the several disparate lineages that comprise the paraphyletic genus Nitzschia. This finding, coupled with the recent discovery of other diatoms with constant hantzschioid symmetry but with a morphology very similar to the type species of Nitzschia, is discussed in relation to the status and characterization of Hantzschi...
TL;DR: An examination of molecular differentiation and distribution was undertaken using the mitochondrial COI-5P and plastid rbcL gene sequences, showing evidence that the Philippine populations of Py.
Abstract: Pyropia acanthophora is a foliose Bangiales with widely known endemic populations in Indo-Pacific region. This alga has expanded its range recently as a consequence of introduction. In an attempt t...
TL;DR: The Anisolpidium genus is therefore entirely distinct from the Hyphochytridiomycota and represents the first confirmed instance of an anteriorly uniciliate oomycete.
Abstract: Using laboratory cultures, we have documented the life cycle of Anisolpidium ectocarpii, a pathogen of Ectocarpus and other filamentous brown algae, and presented preliminary observations on Anisol...
TL;DR: The nuclease-associated gene editing technologies such as CRISpr-associated RNA-guided endonuclease Cas9 (CRISPR-Cas9) could efficiently generate stable targeted gene editing in algae.
Abstract: The establishment of a system for gene modification is crucial for the generation of new improved algal strains and elucidation of functional genome organization to enhance our understanding of alg...
TL;DR: It is suggested that the ostiole position of the zoosporangia might effectively indicate the main lineages of Trentepohliales, with reassessment of the genera Trentepohlia and Printzina required based on this ostIOle positioning.
Abstract: The order Trentepohliales is composed of a complex of five aerial genera of branched filamentous green algae, Trentepohlia, Printzina, Phycopeltis , Cephaleuros and Stomatochroon ; polyphyly has been discovered in some of these genera and species. To clarify the diversity and some taxonomic problems in the Trentepohliales, we collected specimens from southern China and successfully cultured the majority of them. We carefully observed morphological traits and performed phylogenetic analyses based on new 18S and ITS rDNA sequences obtained during the present study. Our results suggested that the ostiole position of the zoosporangia might effectively indicate the main lineages of Trentepohliales, with reassessment of the genera Trentepohlia and Printzina required based on this ostiole positioning. However, further molecular investigation, particularly for the genus Phycopeltis , is required. Phenotypic plasticity was very common in Trentepohlia and Cephaleuros and the traditionally circumscribed taxa may not be reliable. In Cephaleuros , the lichenized species do not form a single clade and most species are paraphyletic. Additionally, we suggest that a lack of description of the internal systems could be one reason for the difficulties in species identification. Further taxonomic studies should focus on an emendation of Cephaleuros and elucidating the molecular diversity of Phycopeltis .
TL;DR: Evaluation of genetic diversity of all the cyanobacteria species studied revealed that evolution from their common ancestors was polyphyletic, and the genomes were very diverse and varied among species, and significant genomic diversity was observed at the species and strain level.
Abstract: Cyanobacteria are among the most abundant organisms present on earth and are considered to be one of the oldest known clades. Cyanobacteria are oxygenic photosynthetic bacteria and are well known a...
TL;DR: It is hypothesized that the small salt marsh Fucus forms originate from genome size changes in the parental taxa, consistent with polyploidy.
Abstract: Genetic affiliation, nuclear DNA content, and gamete functioning were examined in small salt marsh Fucus from three localities in western Ireland. Individuals with small and dioecious receptacles were found at all localities, but production of germlings was only evident at Locality 1. Here, the Fucus vegetation formed a morphological cline from F. vesiculosus with bladders in the mid-intertidal to small Fucus individuals lacking bladders in the salt marsh of the upper intertidal. Measurements of nuclear DNA content ranged from 1–1.8 pg at this locality, with F. vesiculosus individuals in the lower range. At the two other localities, the small salt marsh Fucus consisted of distinct morphological entities. Microsatellite analyses revealed that individuals at Locality 2 were derived mainly from F. vesiculosus, whereas those from Locality 3 were hybrids between F. vesiculosus and F. spiralis with greatest affiliation to F. spiralis. While the small salt marsh Fucus forms from Locality 2 had high nucle...
TL;DR: The classification system developed in this study completes a hierarchical framework for classifying the NE Atlantic coast, a promising approach that permits the application of the most suitable resolution in each case study that could be applicable to a wide range of coastal areas.
Abstract: An ecological classification at the local scale may be a useful tool for conservation planning and for the implementation of specific management programmes in a region. For this purpose, a methodology previously applied on a small scale has been adapted to classify the coast of Cantabria (N Spain). This methodology includes a physical classification and biological validation. The shoreline was divided into 1 km stretches, and the abiotic variables (sea surface temperature, photosynthetically active radiation, significant wave height and coastal morphology) were recorded for each stretch. A hierarchical classification was proposed, with a first level that encompassed a grouping of quantitative variables based on SOM and k-mean analysis and a second level that subdivided the previous groups according to the categorical variable ‘coastal morphology’. To validate the classification using biological data, cover of intertidal macroalgal species was obtained at 14 sites along the study area, and several ...
TL;DR: The phylogenetic position, morphology and ultrastructure of the strain CCALA 307 previously identified as Coccomyxa cf.
Abstract: Culture collections of microorganisms can still hold undiscovered biodiversity; with molecular techniques, considerable progress has been made in characterizing microalgae which were isolated in the past and misidentified due to a lack of morphological features. However, many strains are still awaiting taxonomic reassessment. Here we analysed the phylogenetic position, morphology and ultrastructure of the strain CCALA 307 previously identified as Coccomyxa cf. gloeobotrydiformis Reysigl isolated in 1987 from field soil in South Bohemia, Czech Republic. Molecular phylogenetic analyses based on SSU rDNA and the plastid rbcL gene revealed that the strain CCALA 307 formed a distinct sister lineage to Neocystis and Prasiola clades within the Trebouxiophyceae. We describe this strain as a new genus and species, Lunachloris lukesovae. Multiple conserved nucleotide positions identified in the secondary structures of the highly variable ITS2 rDNA barcoding marker provide further evidence of the phylogeneti...
TL;DR: It is reasonable to assume that habitat with its microenvironmental conditions, and not biogeography, controls genetic diversity in Klebsormidium.
Abstract: Terrestrial filamentous green algae of the widely distributed, cosmopolitan genus Klebsormidium (Klebsormidiophyceae, Streptophyta) are typical components of biological soil crusts (BSCs). These co...