scholarly journals Copepod Prey Selection and Grazing Efficiency Mediated by Chemical and Morphological Defensive Traits of Cyanobacteria

Toxins ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 465 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luciana M. Rangel ◽  
Lúcia H. S. Silva ◽  
Elisabeth J. Faassen ◽  
Miquel Lürling ◽  
Kemal Ali Ger
Keyword(s):  
Prey Selection ◽  
Toxin Production ◽  
The Other ◽  
Zooplankton Grazing ◽  
Filament Length ◽  
Filamentous Cyanobacteria ◽  
Copepod Grazing ◽  
Specific Manner ◽  
Cyanobacterial Dominance

Phytoplankton anti-grazer traits control zooplankton grazing and are associated with harmful blooms. Yet, how morphological versus chemical phytoplankton defenses regulate zooplankton grazing is poorly understood. We compared zooplankton grazing and prey selection by contrasting morphological (filament length: short vs. long) and chemical (saxitoxin: STX- vs. STX+) traits of a bloom-forming cyanobacterium (Raphidiopsis) offered at different concentrations in mixed diets with an edible phytoplankton to a copepod grazer. The copepod selectively grazed on the edible prey (avoidance of cyanobacteria) even when the cyanobacterium was dominant. Avoidance of the cyanobacterium was weakest for the “short STX-” filaments and strongest for the other three strains. Hence, filament size had an effect on cyanobacterial avoidance only in the STX- treatments, while toxin production significantly increased cyanobacterial avoidance regardless of filament size. Moreover, cyanobacterial dominance reduced grazing on the edible prey by almost 50%. Results emphasize that the dominance of filamentous cyanobacteria such as Raphidiopsis can interfere with copepod grazing in a trait specific manner. For cyanobacteria, toxin production may be more effective than filament size as an anti-grazer defense against selectively grazing zooplankton such as copepods. Our results highlight how multiple phytoplankton defensive traits interact to regulate the producer-consumer link in plankton ecosystems.

scholarly journals Different Roles of Top-Down and Bottom-Up Processes in the Distribution of Size-Fractionated Phytoplankton in Gwangyang Bay

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 1682
Author(s):  
Yoonja Kang ◽  
Yeongji Oh
Keyword(s):  
Nutrient Availability ◽  
Fast Response ◽  
Nutrient Addition ◽  
The Other ◽  
Zooplankton Grazing ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Phytoplankton Distribution ◽  
Summer Bloom ◽  
Gwangyang Bay

The interactive roles of zooplankton grazing (top-down) and nutrient (bottom-up) processes on phytoplankton distribution in a temperate estuary were investigated via dilution and nutrient addition experiments. The responses of size-fractionated phytoplankton and major phytoplankton groups, as determined by flow cytometry, were examined in association with zooplankton grazing and nutrient availability. The summer bloom was attributed to nanoplankton, and microplankton was largely responsible for the winter bloom, whereas the picoplankton biomass was relatively consistent throughout the sampling periods, except for the fall. The nutrient addition experiments illustrated that nanoplankton responded more quickly to phosphate than the other groups in the summer, whereas microplankton had a faster response to most nutrients in the winter. The dilution experiments ascribed that the grazing mortality rates of eukaryotes were low compared to those of the other groups, whereas autotrophic cyanobacteria were more palatable to zooplankton than cryptophytes and eukaryotes. Our experimental results indicate that efficient escape from zooplankton grazing and fast response to nutrient availability synergistically caused the microplankton to bloom in the winter, whereas the bottom-up process (i.e., the phosphate effect) largely governed the nanoplankton bloom in the summer.

Microsurgically generated discontinuities provoke heritable changes in cellular handedness of a ciliate, Stylonychia mytilus

Development ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 111 (2) ◽  
pp. 337-356
Author(s):  
X.B. Shi ◽  
Z.I. Qiu ◽  
W. He ◽  
J. Frankel
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Mirror Image ◽  
The Other ◽  
Left Edge ◽  
Left Handed ◽  
Specific Manner ◽  
The Right ◽  
Anteroposterior Polarity ◽  
Posterior Anterior ◽  
Stylonychia Mytilus

Stylonychia mytilus is a dorsoventrally flattened ciliate with compound ciliary structures arranged in a specific manner on the cell surface. In mirror-image (MI) doublets of this ciliate, two nearly complete sets of ciliary structures are arrayed side-by-side, one in a normal or ‘right-handed’ (RH) arrangement, the other in a reversed or ‘left-handed’ (LH) arrangement. MI-doublets exist in two forms, one with the RH component on the right, the LH component on the left, and feeding structures near the center (‘buccal-adjoining MI-doublet’); the other with the RH component on the left, the LH component on the right, and feeding structures on the lateral edges (‘buccal-opposing MI-doublet’). We describe an operation that can generate either type of MI-doublet. This operation interchanges large anterior and posterior regions of the cell, transposing the original posterior region anteriorly (P—A) and the original anterior region posteriorly (A—P), while retaining the original anteroposterior polarity of each region. Two sets of new ciliary structures then are formed in mirror-image arrangement, with the set in the P—A region oriented normally and the set in the A—P region undergoing a reversal of polarity along its anteroposterior axis. This sometimes creates end-to-end MI forms, but more commonly produces side-by-side MI-doublets through a folding together of the P—A and A—P regions. This folding occurs because one lateral edge of the cell had been removed during the operation; if the left edge was removed, the complex folds to the left and forms a buccal-adjoining MI-doublet, whereas if the right edge was removed, the complex folds to the right and forms a buccal-opposing MI-doublet. Both types can reorganize and later divide true-to-type, although the ‘buccal-opposing’ type is by far the more stable of the two. The generation of mirror-image forms is dependent on the prior abnormal juxtaposition of regions from opposite ends of the cell, and involves a coordinated respecification of large-scale organization. We interpret this response to be a consequence of intercalation of missing intervening positional values in the zone of posterior-anterior abutment.

Contribution of Composition, Physicochemical Characteristics and Polyphosphates to the Microbial Safety of Pasteurized Cheese Spreads

1994 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 295-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
KARL F. ECKNER ◽  
WENDY A. DUSTMAN ◽  
ANNA A. RYŚ-RODRIGUEZ
Keyword(s):  
Clostridium Botulinum ◽  
Toxin Production ◽  
Physicochemical Characteristics ◽  
The Other ◽  
Microbial Safety ◽  
Processed Cheese ◽  
Moisture Contents ◽  
Glass Containers ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Process Cheese

Pasteurized process cheese spread was manufactured with moisture contents of 52, 54, 56 and 60%. Three different types of phosphate emulsifier were used, disodium ortho-phosphate and two commercially-available polyphosphates, S9 and S9H. Pasteurized, processed cheese spreads were inoculated with approximately 1 × 104 Clostridium botulinum spores/gram cheese in the cook kettle, held 3 min at 80°C, hot-filled into glass containers, and incubated at 30°C. Samples were analyzed over 30 weeks for growth of C. botulinum and toxigenesis. Toxin was first detected in 60% moisture cheese with disodium ortho-phosphate as the emulsifier at 8 weeks and in 60% moisture cheese with the test polyphosphates as the emulsifier when tested at 20 weeks. None of the other cheese formulations were toxic at 20 weeks. Toxin production correlated statistically to time, moisture, pH and phosphate type.

EFFECT OF LOW DOSE GAMMA IRRADIATION ON GROWTH AND AFLATOXIN PRODUCTION BY ASPERGILLUS PARASITICUS1

1974 ◽  
Vol 37 (8) ◽  
pp. 430-434 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. B. Bullerman ◽  
T. E. Hartung
Keyword(s):  
Standard Deviation ◽  
Low Dose ◽  
Aspergillus Parasiticus ◽  
Aflatoxin Production ◽  
Toxin Production ◽  
The Other ◽  
Subsequent Growth ◽  
Irradiation Level ◽  
Yeast Extract Sucrose ◽  
Stimulation Of

Spores and growing vegetative mycelia of Aspergillus parasiticus strains NRRL 2999 and NRRL 3000 were irradiated at 100 and 200 Krad, and the effects on growth and aflatoxin production in yeast-extract sucrose (YES) broth were measured. Irradiation of growing mycelia reduced subsequent growth in YES broth by a greater amount than irradiation of spores. Irradiation of spores at 100 Krad resulted in more B1 and G1 production by strain NRRL 2999 than the non-irradiated control, however, strain NRRL 3000 produced less aflatoxins B1 and G1 after irradiation at 100 Krad than its non-irradiated control. Spores of both strains irradiated at 200 Krad produced less aflatoxins B1 and G1 than non-irradiated controls. Irradiation of growing vegetative mycelia of both strains at 100 and 200 Krad resulted in a definite decline in both aflatoxins B1 and G1 in subsequent cultures at each irradiation level. Apparent stimulation of production of both B1 and G1 occurred after irradiation of spores of strain NRRL 2999 at 100 Krad. However, the variation of the values as determined by the standard deviation was such that one would conclude that no differences existed among means. The apparent stimulation was slight and of much less magnitude than that which has been reported by other investigators using A. flavus. No stimulation of toxin production was observed with the other strain when grown from irradiated spores or with either strain when vegetative mycelia were irradiated.

scholarly journals Dissociable effects of visual crowding on the perception of color and motion

2020 ◽  
Vol 117 (14) ◽  
pp. 8196-8202 ◽  
Author(s):  
John A. Greenwood ◽  
Michael J. Parsons
Keyword(s):  
Deleterious Effect ◽  
Peripheral Vision ◽  
The Other ◽  
Correct Recognition ◽  
Visual Features ◽  
Double Dissociation ◽  
Multiple Processes ◽  
Specific Manner ◽  
Visual Crowding ◽  
Selective Mechanism

Our ability to recognize objects in peripheral vision is fundamentally limited by crowding, the deleterious effect of clutter that disrupts the recognition of features ranging from orientation and color to motion and depth. Previous research is equivocal on whether this reflects a singular process that disrupts all features simultaneously or multiple processes that affect each independently. We examined crowding for motion and color, two features that allow a strong test of feature independence. “Cowhide” stimuli were presented 15° in peripheral vision, either in isolation or surrounded by flankers to give crowding. Observers reported either the target direction (clockwise/counterclockwise from upward) or its hue (blue/purple). We first established that both features show systematic crowded errors (biased predominantly toward the flanker identities) and selectivity for target–flanker similarity (with reduced crowding for dissimilar target/flanker elements). The multiplicity of crowding was then tested with observers identifying both features. Here, a singular object-selective mechanism predicts that when crowding is weak for one feature and strong for the other that crowding should be all-or-none for both. In contrast, when crowding was weak for color and strong for motion, errors were reduced for color but remained for motion, and vice versa with weak motion and strong color crowding. This double dissociation reveals that crowding disrupts certain combinations of visual features in a feature-specific manner, ruling out a singular object-selective mechanism. Thus, the ability to recognize one aspect of a cluttered scene, like color, offers no guarantees for the correct recognition of other aspects, like motion.

Phenotypic and genetic diversities are not correlated in strains of the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa isolated in SW Spain. Las diversidades fenotípica y genética de cepas de la cianobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa aisladas en el SW de España no están correlacionadas

2013 ◽  
Vol 38 ◽  
pp. 5-12
Author(s):  
Victoria López-Rodas ◽  
Eduardo Costas ◽  
Antonio Flores-Moya
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Structure ◽  
Microcystis Aeruginosa ◽  
National Park ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Toxin Production ◽  
The Other ◽  
Water Bodies ◽  
Phenotypic Traits ◽  
Doñana National Park ◽  
Sw Spain

English.  The cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa (Kützing) Kützing is notorious for forming extensive and toxic blooms but the genetic structure of natural populations, and in particular during blooms, remains to be explored. In order to add more knowledge about the genetic structure of M. aeruginosa, we compared phenotypic and genetic variabilities in seventeen strains of M. aeruginosa isolated from three adjacent water bodies in SW Spain (the consecutive reservoirs La Minilla and El Gergal, and small pools in Doñana National Park). For this purpose, a phenetic tree, based on six phenotypic traits (including morphology of cells, photosynthetic and respiratory performance, and toxin production) was compared with a phylogenetic tree built by using the 16S-23S rDNA Internal Transcribed Spacer sequence. Whereas the strains isolated from La Minilla showed a relatively homogeneous phenotype, the phenotypic traits of the remaining strains did not discriminate between the other two water bodies. On the other hand, only a strain isolated in Doñana National Park showed a slightly different ITS sequence, but the sequences from the remaining strains were similar. Possible explanations for this discrepancy between phenotypic and genetic diversities are discussed.Español.  La cianobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa (Kützing) Kützing puede dar lugar a extensas floraciones tóxicas pero la estructura genética de las poblaciones naturales, y en particular durante las floraciones, ha sido escasamente estudiada. Con el objeto de profundizar en la estructura genética de M. aeruginosa, se han comparado las variabilidades fenotípica y genética de diecisiete cepas aisladas de tres cuerpos de agua adyacentes en el SW de España (los embalses consecutivos de La Minilla y El Gergal, y charcas en el Parque Nacional de Doñana). Para este fin, un árbol de similitud fenética basado en seis caracteres fenotípicos (que incluyen la morfología de las células, el rendimiento fotosintético y respiratorio y la producción de toxina) se comparó con un árbol filogenético construido mediante el uso de la secuencia de ITS 16S - 23S del ADNr. Las cepas aisladas en La Minilla mostraron un fenotipo relativamente homogéneo pero no se detectó un patrón de fenotipos que discriminase los otros dos cuerpos de agua. Por otro lado, sólo una cepa aislada en el Parque Nacional de Doñana mostró una secuencia ITS diferente, pero las secuencias de las cepas restantes fueron idénticas. Se discuten las posibles explicaciones para esta discrepancia entre la diversidad fenotípica y genética en M. aeruginosa.

Colicinogeny among Escherichia coli Serotypes, Including O157:H7, Representing Four Closely Related Diarrheagenic Clones

1998 ◽  
Vol 61 (11) ◽  
pp. 1431-1438 ◽  
Author(s):  
SHELTON E. MURINDA ◽  
SHU-MIN LIU ◽  
ROBERT F. ROBERTS ◽  
RICHARD A. WILSON
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Toxin Production ◽  
Coli Strain ◽  
The Other ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Diarrheagenic Escherichia Coli ◽  
Reference Set ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Luria Agar

Twenty-seven diarrheagenic Escherichia coli (DEC) strains from five closely related, genetically distinct clones (DEC 3, 4, 8, 9, and 10), representing serotypes commonly associated with Shiga-like toxin production, i.e., 015:H−, 026:(H11, H−), 0111:(H8, H11, H−), and O157:H7, were evaluated for colicinogeny on Luria agar or Luria agar containing 0.25 μg/ml mitomycin C to induce colicin production. Ten (37%) of the DEC strains tested were colicinogenic. One of 11 serotype O157:H7 strains, DEC strain 4E, produced a colicin identified as Col D. DEC strains 8B, 9D, and 10B produced Col E1, whereas DEC strain 10A produced Col E2. DEC strains 8A, 8E, 10C, 10E, and 10F produced “untypable” colicins that killed almost all Pugsley Colicin Reference Set strains and the other DEC strains tested. To aid with further characterization of the colicins, plasmids extracted from each colicin-producing (Col+) DEC strain were used to transform E. coli strain DH5α. All Col+ DH5α transformants contained one plasmid ranging in size from 1.3 to 10 kb. Some transformants were stable colicin producers whereas others were unstable. The inhibitory activity and colicin sensitivity and insensitivity profiles of the Col+ transformants were similar to those of the corresponding Col+ donor DEC strains. It appears that the untypable colicins are novel and, thus, warrant further study. Colicin production by some of the DEC strains evaluated partly explains why they were insensitive to standard colicins in a previous study.

scholarly journals Automated Quantification and Sizing of Unbranched Filamentous Cyanobacteria by Model-Based Object-Oriented Image Analysis

2010 ◽  
Vol 76 (5) ◽  
pp. 1615-1622 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Zeder ◽  
Silke Van den Wyngaert ◽  
Oliver K�ster ◽  
Kathrin M. Felder ◽  
Jakob Pernthaler
Keyword(s):  
Image Analysis ◽  
Length Distribution ◽  
Object Oriented ◽  
Microscopic Analysis ◽  
Basic Research ◽  
Filament Length ◽  
Filamentous Cyanobacteria ◽  
Water Quality Control ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Field Samples

ABSTRACT Quantification and sizing of filamentous cyanobacteria in environmental samples or cultures are time-consuming and are often performed by using manual or semiautomated microscopic analysis. Automation of conventional image analysis is difficult because filaments may exhibit great variations in length and patchy autofluorescence. Moreover, individual filaments frequently cross each other in microscopic preparations, as deduced by modeling. This paper describes a novel approach based on object-oriented image analysis to simultaneously determine (i) filament number, (ii) individual filament lengths, and (iii) the cumulative filament length of unbranched cyanobacterial morphotypes in fluorescent microscope images in a fully automated high-throughput manner. Special emphasis was placed on correct detection of overlapping objects by image analysis and on appropriate coverage of filament length distribution by using large composite images. The method was validated with a data set for Planktothrix rubescens from field samples and was compared with manual filament tracing, the line intercept method, and the Uterm�hl counting approach. The computer program described allows batch processing of large images from any appropriate source and annotation of detected filaments. It requires no user interaction, is available free, and thus might be a useful tool for basic research and drinking water quality control.

Dietary response of Barn Owls (Tyto alba) to large variations in populations of common voles (Microtus arvalis) and European water voles (Arvicola terrestris)

2010 ◽  
Vol 88 (4) ◽  
pp. 416-426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadine Bernard ◽  
Dominique Michelat ◽  
Francis Raoul ◽  
Jean-Pierre Quéré ◽  
Pierre Delattre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prey Selection ◽  
The Other ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Tyto Alba ◽  
Microtus Arvalis ◽  
Arvicola Terrestris ◽  
Grassland Species ◽  
European Water ◽  
Opportunistic Predator ◽  
Common Voles

The diet of the Barn Owl ( Tyto alba (Scopoli, 1769)) was studied over an 8-year period in the Jura mountains of France, during two population surges of its main rodent prey (common voles, Microtus arvalis (Pallas, 1778), and European water voles, Arvicola terrestris (L.,1758)), allowing us to test whether T. alba is an opportunistic predator as is often cited in the literature or exhibits more complex patterns of prey selection as is reported in arid environments. Small mammals were sampled by trapping and index methods. We observed (i) significant correlations between the proportions of A. terrestris, M. arvalis, and woodland rodents in the diet and their respective densities in the field; (ii) interactions between populations of A. terrestris and M. arvalis, indicating that the proportion of each species in diet was affected by the density of the other; (iii) proportions of red-toothed shrews (genus Sorex (L., 1758)) in the diet did not correlate with their abundance in the field, indicating that those species were likely to be preyed upon when others were no longer available. This confirms that T. alba is generally opportunistic; however, prey selection of a focal species (e.g., Sorex spp., grassland species) can be affected by the density or availability of the other prey species.

scholarly journals Atmospheric CO2 availability induces varying responses in net photosynthesis, toxin production and N2 fixation rates in heterocystous filamentous Cyanobacteria (Nostoc and Nodularia)

2021 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Wannicke ◽  
Achim Herrmann ◽  
Michelle M. Gehringer
Keyword(s):  
Nitrogen Availability ◽  
Dark Respiration ◽  
Net Photosynthesis ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Toxin Production ◽  
Oxygenic Photosynthesis ◽  
List Type ◽  
Filamentous Cyanobacteria ◽  
Biological Nitrogen ◽  
Stimulation Of

AbstractHeterocystous Cyanobacteria of the genus Nodularia form major blooms in brackish waters, while terrestrial Nostoc species occur worldwide, often associated in biological soil crusts. Both genera, by virtue of their ability to fix N2 and conduct oxygenic photosynthesis, contribute significantly to global primary productivity. Select Nostoc and Nodularia species produce the hepatotoxin nodularin and whether its production will change under climate change conditions needs to be assessed. In light of this, the effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 availability on growth, carbon and N2 fixation as well as nodularin production were investigated in toxin and non-toxin producing species of both genera. Results highlighted the following: Biomass and volume specific biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) rates were respectively almost six and 17 fold higher in the aquatic Nodularia species compared to the terrestrial Nostoc species tested, under elevated CO2 conditions. There was a direct correlation between elevated CO2 and decreased dry weight specific cellular nodularin content in a diazotrophically grown terrestrial Nostoc species, and the aquatic Nodularia species, regardless of nitrogen availability. Elevated atmospheric CO2 levels were correlated to a reduction in biomass specific BNF rates in non-toxic Nodularia species. Nodularin producers exhibited stronger stimulation of net photosynthesis rates (NP) and growth (more positive Cohen’s d) and less stimulation of dark respiration and BNF per volume compared to non-nodularin producers under elevated CO2 levels. This study is the first to provide information on NP and nodularin production under elevated atmospheric CO2 levels for Nodularia and Nostoc species under nitrogen replete and diazotrophic conditions.

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