Chilean waters are often affected by Alexandrium catenella, one of the leading organisms behind Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs). Genetic variability for this species are commonly carried out from cultured samples, approach that may not accurately quantify genetic variability of this organism in the water column. In this study, genetic variability of A. catenella was determined by sequencing the rDNA region, in water samples from the Canal Puyuhuapi (South Austral Ecosystem of Chile). A. catenella was detected in 8,8% of samples analysed. All sequences obtained were A. catenella (Tamara complex group I), with three highly frequent haplotypes (34%), and twenty new haplotypes. These haplotypes increase the genetic variability from 2.8% to 3.14% in this area. Through this new method, genetic determination of A. catenella can accurately be monitored and ecological studies of this species can be implemented.
Due to the overexploitation of industrial fisheries, as the principal source of fish oil, as well as the increasing replacement of synthetic pigments for animal nutrition, we need to find sustainable sources for these essential nutrient productions. Marine Rhodotorula strains NCYC4007 and NCYC1146 were used to determine the biosynthesis of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and carotenoids by biotransforming raw glycerol, a waste product of biodiesel. To evaluate the presence of inhibitory substances in raw glycerol, both strains were also grown in the presence of analytical grade glycerol and glucose as the main carbon source separately. With raw glycerol, NCYC4007 showed a significant correlation between DHA production and intracellular phosphorous concentrations. NCYC1146, a new Rhodotorula strain genetically described in this work, can produce canthaxanthin but only when glycerol is used as a main carbon source. Then, NCYC4007 could synthesize DHA as a phospholipid, and the production of canthaxanthin depends on the kind of carbon source used by NCYC1146. Finally, malate dehydrogenase activity and glucose production can be used as a proxy of the metabolisms in these marine Rhodotorula. This is the first evidence that marine Rhodotorula are capable of synthesizing DHA and canthaxanthin using an alternative and low-cost source of carbon to potentially scale their sustainable production for animal nutrition.
The aerobic and anaerobic enzymatic activity of two important commercial bathypelagic species living in the Juan Fernández seamounts was analyzed: alfonsino (Beryx splendens) and orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus). These seamounts are influenced by the presence of an oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) located between 160 and 250 m depth. Both species have vertical segregation; alfonsino is able to stay in the OMZ, while orange roughy remains at greater depths. In this study, we compare the aerobic and anaerobic capacity of these species, measuring the activity of key metabolic enzymes in different body tissues (muscle, heart, brain and liver). Alfonsino has higher anaerobic potential in its white muscle due to greater lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity (190.2 μmol NADH min(-1) g ww(-1)), which is related to its smaller body size, but it is also a feature shared with species that migrate through OMZs. This potential and the higher muscle citrate synthase and electron transport system activities indicate that alfonsino has greater swimming activity level than orange roughy. This species has also a high MDH/LDH ratio in its heart, brain and liver, revealing a potential capacity to conduct aerobic metabolism in these organs under prolonged periods of environmental low oxygen conditions, preventing lactic acid accumulation. With these metabolic characteristics, alfonsino may have increased swimming activity to migrate and also could stay for a period of time in the OMZ. The observed differences between alfonsino and orange roughy with respect to their aerobic and anaerobic enzymatic activity are consistent with their characteristic vertical distributions and feeding behaviors.
Fish oil is used in the production of feed for cultured fish owing to its high polyunsaturated fatty acid content (PUFA). The over-exploitation of fisheries and events like “El Niño” are reducing the fish oil supply. Some marine microorganisms are considered potentially as alternative fatty acid sources. This study assesses a strain of Rhodotorula sp. (strain CNYC4007; 27% docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) of total fatty acids), as feed for fish larvae. The total length and ribonucleic acid (RNA)/deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) ratio of Danio rerio larvae was determined at first feeding at six and 12 days old (post-yolk absorption larvae). Larvae fed with microencapsulated Rhodotorula sp. CNYC4007 had a significantly higher RNA/DNA ratio than control group (C1). At six days post-yolk absorption group, the RNA/DNA ratio of larvae fed with Rhodotorula sp. bioencapsulated in Brachionus sp. was significantly higher than control group fed with a commercial diet high in DHA (C2-DHA). Finally, at 12 days post-yolk absorption, the RNA/DNA ratio was significantly higher in larvae fed with Rhodotorula sp. CNYC4007 and C2-DHA (both bioencapsulated in Artemia sp. nauplii) than in control group (C1). These results suggest that Rhodotorula sp. CNYC4007 can be an alternative source of DHA for feeding fish at larval stage, providing a sustainable source of fatty acids.
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