Environment-dependent metabolic investments in the mixotrophic chrysophyte Ochromonas

© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Phycology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Phycological Society of America..

Mixotrophic protists combine photosynthesis and phagotrophy to obtain energy and nutrients. Because mixotrophs can act as either primary producers or consumers, they have a complex role in marine food webs and biogeochemical cycles. Many mixotrophs are also phenotypically plastic and can adjust their metabolic investments in response to resource availability. Thus, a single species's ecological role may vary with environmental conditions. Here, we quantified how light and food availability impacted the growth rates, energy acquisition rates, and metabolic investment strategies of eight strains of the mixotrophic chrysophyte, Ochromonas. All eight Ochromonas strains photoacclimated by decreasing chlorophyll content as light intensity increased. Some strains were obligate phototrophs that required light for growth, while other strains showed stronger metabolic responses to prey availability. When prey availability was high, all eight strains exhibited accelerated growth rates and decreased their investments in both photosynthesis and phagotrophy. Photosynthesis and phagotrophy generally produced additive benefits: In low-prey environments, Ochromonas growth rates increased to maximum, light-saturated rates with increasing light but increased further with the addition of abundant bacterial prey. The additive benefits observed between photosynthesis and phagotrophy in Ochromonas suggest that the two metabolic modes provide nonsubstitutable resources, which may explain why a tradeoff between phagotrophic and phototrophic investments emerged in some but not all strains.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2024

Erschienen:

2024

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:60

Enthalten in:

Journal of phycology - 60(2024), 1 vom: 25. Feb., Seite 170-184

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Barbaglia, Gina S [VerfasserIn]
Paight, Christopher [VerfasserIn]
Honig, Meredith [VerfasserIn]
Johnson, Matthew D [VerfasserIn]
Marczak, Ryan [VerfasserIn]
Lepori-Bui, Michelle [VerfasserIn]
Moeller, Holly V [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

1406-65-1
Chlorophyll
Journal Article
Metabolism
Mixoplankton
Phagotrophy
Photoacclimation
Photosynthesis
Plasticity
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
Tradeoffs

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 19.02.2024

Date Revised 15.04.2024

published: Print-Electronic

Citation Status MEDLINE

doi:

10.1111/jpy.13418

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM366316931