Marine primary production is the central process that determines the ultimate value and importance of marine ecosystems and is responsible for half of global carbon fixation and oxygen production. The major loss of primary production in the ocean is predation by herbivorous protists on phytoplankton. Oxyrrhis marina is a globally-distributed heterotrophic dinoflagellate commonly found in marine and brackish near-shore waters. Lipids are important energy molecules, and can be used as biomarkers for the assessment of food webs. Using O. marina as our model dinoflagellate we have investigated the changes to the lipidome under saturation and starvation conditions. The lipidome was profiled by flow cytometry, HPLC, and GC-MS. During active feeding on the algae Cryptomonas sp., the O. marina lipidome does not mirror its food source. O. marina demonstrates the accumulation of very-long-chain fatty alcohols up to C40 and sterols when satiated. Over a 20 day starvation period, a shift in the O. marina lipidome occurs. Starvation results in a decrease in sterol content and an accumulation of triglycerides and waxes composed of shorter chain fatty alcohols. Our characterization of the O. marina lipidome provides opportunities for the development of lipid biomarkers for energy demand and status in marine microbial predators for the assessment of coastal ecosystems.

Metabolomic lipid profiling of dinoflagellates under saturation and starvation conditions: Identification of biomarkers of coastal ecosystem health

256th National Meeting (2018)

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