典型红树林生态系统藻类多样性及其在生态过程中的作用

藻类是红树林生态系统重要的生物类群, 根据生态习性可分为浮游植物、底栖微藻和大型藻类三个生态类群, 它们在红树林生态系统生物多样性、初级生产、元素循环等方面起着重要作用。但在红树林生态系统中, 关注重点多集中在红树植物和动物, 对其中的藻类重视不够, 且多数研究集中在近20年以及亚洲的红树林区。事实上, 红树林生态系统藻类非常丰富, 其多样性研究有助于深入揭示红树林生态系统的结构与功能。本文介绍了红树林生态系统藻类的组成类群及其重要性, 重点对红树林区浮游植物、底栖硅藻和大型海藻的种类组成、地理分布及其与初级生产力、水质污染、元素循环、碳库形成等生态过程中的作用的研究动态和进展等进行了总结。根据已有研究, 红树林区浮游植物和底栖硅藻的种类数一般为几十到上百种, 其中硅藻在种类和数量上都占绝对优势, 它们是重要的初级生产者、饵料生物和水质污染指示生物; 红树林区底栖大型藻类主要由红藻、绿藻、褐藻、蓝藻组成, 绿藻的种类较多, 红藻在数量上占优势; 藻类是红树林湿地碳库的重要贡献者, 在红树林湿地生态系统碳汇和碳循环中起重要作用。红树林生态系统是个高度动态和异质的系统, 今后应加强红树林藻类多样性的长周期、大尺度变化及不同生境藻类的综合研究, 关注大陆径流和潮汐对藻类多样性和蓝碳的影响, 借助沉积物藻类记录, 探明红树林区藻类的长周期变化, 反演气候变化和人类活动对红树林生态系统的影响过程和机制。     

Dissociation and horizontal transmission of codispersing lichen symbionts in the genus Lepraria (Lecanorales: Stereocaulaceae)

Lichenized fungi of the genus Lepraria lack ascomata and conidiomata, and symbionts codisperse by soredia. Here, it is determined whether algal symbionts associated with Lepraria are monophyletic, and whether fungal and algal phylogenies are congruent, both of which are indicative of a long-term, continuous association between symbionts. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and part of the actin type I locus were sequenced from algae associated with Lepraria, and the fungal ITS and mitochondrial small subunit (mtSSU) were sequenced from fungal symbionts. Phylogenetic analyses tested for monophyly of algal symbionts and congruence between algal and fungal phylogenies. Algae associated with Lepraria were not monophyletic, and identical algae associated with different Lepraria individuals and species. Algal and fungal phylogenies were not congruent, suggesting a lack of strict codiversification. This study suggests that associations between symbionts are not strictly maintained over evolutionary time. The ability to switch partners may provide benefits similar to genetic recombination, which may have helped this lineage persist.     

RNA-mediated silencing in Algae: biological roles and tools for analysis of gene function

Algae are a large group of aquatic, typically photosynthetic, eukaryotes that include species from very diverse phylogenetic lineages, from those similar to land plants to those related to protist parasites. The recent sequencing of several algal genomes has provided insights into the great complexity of these organisms. Genomic information has also emphasized our lack of knowledge of the functions of many predicted genes, as well as the gene regulatory mechanisms in algae. Core components of the machinery for RNA-mediated silencing show widespread distribution among algal lineages, but they also seem to have been lost entirely from several species with relatively small nuclear genomes. Complex sets of endogenous small RNAs, including candidate microRNAs and small interfering RNAs, have now been identified by high-throughput sequencing in green, red, and brown algae. However, the natural roles of RNA-mediated silencing in algal biology remain poorly understood. Limited evidence suggests that small RNAs may function, in different algae, in defense mechanisms against transposon mobilization, in responses to nutrient deprivation and, possibly, in the regulation of recently evolved developmental processes. From a practical perspective, RNA interference (RNAi) is becoming a promising tool for assessing gene function by sequence-specific knockdown. Transient gene silencing, triggered with exogenously synthesized nucleic acids, and/or stable gene repression, involving genome-integrated transgenes, have been achieved in green algae, diatoms, yellow-green algae, and euglenoids. The development of RNAi technology in conjunction with system level "omics" approaches may provide the tools needed to advance our understanding of algal physiological and metabolic processes.     

Algal biofilms on tree bark to monitor airborne pollutants

Algae are used in biomonitoring systems to detect water or soil pollution. So it is conceivable to establish a biomonitoring system for the detection of airborne pollutants (ozone and particulate matter (PM-10)) in urban habitats by algae. Autotrophic biofilms are widely present, cover nearly every exposed surface, especially tree bark and consist of a large variety of species of algae, cyanobacteria and fungi. To explore the diversity of green algae at different air pollution monitoring sites we choose trees with different structures of bark at three locations in and near Leipzig. We compared the measured levels of air pollution with the algal species and communities present. The sites differed in the quality and amount of airborne pollutants, among which we concentrated on ozone and particulate matter (PM-10). The collection sites were Leipzig-Centre, Leipzig-West and a forest area east of Leipzig (Collmberg). Autotrophic biofilms were collected, algae cultures established and taxonomic and morphological studies were carried out with light microscopy. Green algae were present on tree bark at all sites and forty-eight different algal species and cyanobacteria were isolated. Preliminary results suggested a correlation between pollutants and occurrence of some specific algal species and the specific algal assemblages at a given site. It is concluded that this could provide the basis for a biomonitoring system involving aero-terrestrial algae for the detection of airborne pollutants. Presented at the International Symposium Biology and Taxonomy of Green Algae V, Smolenice, June 26–29, 2007, Slovakia.     

Advances in genetic engineering of marine algae

Algae are a component of bait sources for animal aquaculture, and they produce abundant valuable compounds for the chemical industry and human health. With today's fast growing demand for algae biofuels and the profitable market for cosmetics and pharmaceuticals made from algal natural products, the genetic engineering of marine algae has been attracting increasing attention as a crucial systemic technology to address the challenge of the biomass feedstock supply for sustainable industrial applications and to modify the metabolic pathway for the more efficient production of high-value products. Nevertheless, to date, only a few marine algae species can be genetically manipulated. In this article, an updated account of the research progress in marine algal genomics is presented along with methods for transformation. In addition, vector construction and gene selection strategies are reviewed. Meanwhile, a review on the progress of bioreactor technologies for marine algae culture is also revisited.     

Algae, macrofaunal assemblages and temperature: a quantitative approach to intertidal ecosystems of Iceland

Algae and the associated macrofauna in two Icelandic intertidal ecosystems under cold and warm influence, respectively, were studied with respect to algae-macrofauna relationships and a possible effect of temperature on community structure. Two sites in Iceland were selected, Sandgerdi ligthhouse (64°8′N 22°40′W) on the southwestern coast, and Grimsey Island (66°33′N 18°04′W), in the north, on the Arctic Circle, where sea temperature is considerably lower (5° approximately). The biomass of algae and the number of species of algae and macrofauna were higher in Sandgerdi than in Grimsey, and the patterns of diversity, evenness, biomass and abundance also differed between the sites. In the intertidal zone of Sandgerdi, a total of 28 species of algae and 45 species of macrofauna were identified whereas only 16 algal species and 27 macrofaunal species were found in Grimsey. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) using algal biomass as the environmental variable were conducted, and revealed significant relationships between algae composition and the associated macrofauna; some macrofauna taxa showed specific trophic or refuge relationships with algal species. According to the CCA, Corallina officinalis showed the highest correlation with macrofaunal assemblages in both study sites. However, correlations between macrofauna and other algae differed between Grimsey and Sandgerdi. The present study, together with additional observations in Greenland waters, shows a general decrease of species richness and diversity towards the north which may primarily be due to the temperature regime.     

Validation of the detection of Pseudo-nitzschia spp. using specific RNA probes tested in a microarray format: Calibration of signal based on variability of RNA content with environmental conditions

Harmful algal blooms (HAB) occur worldwide and cause health problems and economic damage to fisheries and tourism. Monitoring for toxic algae is therefore essential but is based primarily on light microscopy, which is time consuming and can be limited by insufficient morphological characters such that more time is needed to examine critical features with electron microscopy. Monitoring with molecular tools is done in only a few places world-wide. EU FP7 MIDTAL (Microarray Detection of Toxic Algae) used SSU and LSU rRNA genes as targets on microarrays to identify toxic species. In order to comply with current monitoring requirements to report cell numbers as the relevant threshold measurement to trigger closure of fisheries, it was necessary to calibrate our microarray to convert the hybridisation signal obtained to cell numbers. Calibration curves for two species of Pseudo-nitzschia for use with the MIDTAL microarray are presented to obtain cell numbers following hybridisation. It complements work presented by Barra et al. (2012b. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. doi: 10.1007/s11356-012-1330-1v) for two other Pseudo-nitzschia spp., Dittami and Edvardsen (2012a. J. Phycol. 48, 1050) for Pseudochatonella, Blanco et al. (2013. Harmful Algae 24, 80) for Heterosigma, McCoy et al. (2013. FEMS. doi: 10.1111/1574-6941.12277) for Prymnesium spp., Karlodinium veneficum, and cf. Chatonella spp. and Taylor et al. (2014. Harmful Algae, in press) for Alexandrium.     

Wastewater use in algae production for generation of renewable resources: a review and preliminary results

Microalgae feedstock production can be integrated with wastewater and industrial sources of carbon dioxide. This study reviews the literature on algae grown on wastewater and includes a preliminary analysis of algal production based on anaerobic digestion sludge centrate from the Howard F. Curren Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant (HFC AWTP) in Tampa, Florida and secondary effluent from the City of Lakeland wastewater treatment facilities in Lakeland, Florida. It was demonstrated that a mixed culture of wild algae species could successfully be grown on wastewater nutrients and potentially scaled to commercial production. Algae have demonstrated the ability to naturally colonize low-nutrient effluent water in a wetland treatment system utilized by the City of Lakeland. The results from these experiments show that the algae grown in high strength wastewater from the HFC AWTP are light-limited when cultivated indoor since more than 50% of the outdoor illumination is attenuated in the greenhouse. An analysis was performed to determine the mass of algae that can be supported by the wastewater nutrients (mainly nitrogen and phosphorous) available from the two Florida cities. The study was guided by the growth and productivity data obtained for algal growth in the photobioreactors in operation at the University of South Florida. In the analysis, nutrients and light are assumed to be limited, while CO₂ is abundantly available. There is some limitation on land, especially since the HFC AWTP is located at the Port of Tampa. The temperature range in Tampa is assumed to be suitable for algal growth year round. Assuming that the numerous technical challenges to achieving commercial-scale algal production can be met, the results presented suggest that an excess of 71 metric tons per hectare per year of algal biomass can be produced. Two energy production options were considered; liquid biofuels from feedstock with high lipid content, and biogas generation from anaerobic digestion of algae biomass. The total potential oil volume was determined to be approximately 337,500 gallons per year, which may result in the annual production of 270,000 gallons of biodiesel when 80% conversion efficiency is assumed. This production level would be able to sustain approximately 450 cars per year on average. Potential biogas production was estimated to be above 415,000 kg/yr, the equivalent of powering close to 500 homes for a year.     

Green algae in tundra soils affected by coal mine pollutions

Green algal communities were investigated in clean and pollution-impacted tundra soils around the large coal mine industrial complex of Vorkuta in the E. European Russian tundra. Samples were collected in three zones of open-cast coal mining with different degrees of pollution-impacted soil transformation. A total of 42 species of algae were found in all zones. The species richness decreased from 27 species in undisturbed zones to 19 species in polluted zones. Under open-cast coal mining impacts the community structure simplified, and the dominant algae complexes changed. Algae that are typical for clean soils disappeared from the communities. The total abundance of green algae (counted together with Xanthophyta) ranged between 100–120 × 10³ (cells/g dry soils) in undisturbed zones and 0.5–50 × 10³ in polluted zones. Soil algae appear to be better indicators of coal mine technogenic pollution than flowering plants and mosses. Presented at the International Symposium Biology and Taxonomy of Green Algae V, Smolenice, June 26–29, 2007, Slovakia.     

Assessing red algal supraordinal diversity and taxonomy in the context of contemporary systematic data

The wondrously diverse eukaryotes that constitute the red algae have been the focus of numerous recent molecular surveys and remain a rich source of undescribed and little known species for the traditional taxonomist. Molecular studies place the red algae in the kingdom Plantae; however, supraordinal classification has been largely confined to debate on subclass vs. class level status for the two recognized subgroups, one of which is widely acknowledged as paraphyletic. This narrow focus has generally masked the extent to which red algal classification needs modification. We provide a comprehensive review of the literature pertaining to the antiquity, diversity, and systematics of the red algae and propose a contemporary classification based on recent and traditional evidence.     

HOW MANY SPECIES OF ALGAE ARE THERE?

Algae have been estimated to include anything from 30,000 to more than 1 million species. An attempt is made here to arrive at a more accurate estimate using species numbers in phyla and classes included in the on‐line taxonomic database AlgaeBase ( http://www.algaebase.org ). Despite uncertainties regarding what organisms should be included as algae and what a species is in the context of the various algal phyla and classes, a conservative approach results in an estimate of 72,500 algal species, names for 44,000 of which have probably been published, and 33,248 names have been processed by AlgaeBase to date (June 2012). Some published estimates of diatom numbers are of over 200,000 species, which would result in four to five diatom species for every other algal species. Concern is expressed at the decline and potential extinction of taxonomists worldwide capable of improving and completing the necessary systematic studies.     

Photobiont association and genetic diversity of the optionally lichenized fungus Schizoxylon albescens

The fungus Schizoxylon albescens occurs both as lichen and as saprobe. Lichenized colonies grow on the bark of Populus tremula; saprotrophic morphs grow on dead Populus branches. We wanted to (1) test whether lichenized and saprotrophic S. albescens are genetically distinct, (2) investigate photobiont association and diversity, (3) investigate the interactions between fungi and algae that occur during co-cultivation and (4) test whether Schizoxylon shows algal selectivity during lichenization. Fungal and algal genetic diversity were investigated for three markers. Algae from lichenized thalli were isolated in axenic cultures, and isolate sequence diversity was compared with algae amplified directly from thallus fragments. Co-culture experiments of fungi and algae were performed to study the morphological interaction patterns. Two distinct phylogenetic units are revealed in S. albescens, which are interpreted as phenotypically cryptic species. The algae are related to Coccomyxa and Pseudococcomyxa, and form two distinct sister clades separating samples isolated in cultures from those amplified directly from thallus fragments, indicating that more easily cultured strains of algae are not necessarily major components of the lichens. Schizoxylon albescens interacts with isolated algal strains, similar to fungal-Coccomyxa symbioses in nature. As the system is maintained without difficulty in culture, it can potentially be an easily controlled lichen symbiosis study system under laboratory conditions.     

Algal studies of the Danish Wadden Sea. V. Blue-green algae in higher salt march areas — their seasonal and spatial distribution

The blue-green algal flora in the higher salt marsh areas (above average high tide level) at Rejsby in the Danish Wadden Sea area has been investigated regularly throughout a one-year period. Twenty nine pigmented and two colourless taxa were recorded, and their morphology described in detail. The blue-green algae were particularly well developed in the the grazed Puccinellia marsh, at other sites the occurrence was scattered. In winter and spring few algae were seen. Mats appeared in June and then persisted for shorter or longer periods, in some areas throughout the rest of the year. On the basis of frequency analyses, thirteen assemblages characterized by the dominating species were recognized. Factors affecting the spatial and temporal distribution are discussed. The assemblages are compared to the algal communities described by Polderman.     

Photophysiology of Surface Phytoplankton Communities in a Transect from the Mouth of the Peene‐Strom to the Arkona Sea (Baltic)

The potential of surface phytoplankton to withstand photostress was investigated in August 1998 along a transect from the mouth of the Peene‐Strom (Pomeranian Bight) to the open Arkona Sea (Baltic). Photosynthetic efficiency, algal class composition and pigment pattern were determined. Algae were photoinhibited by artificial illumination and the kinetics of recovery were recorded. Under photoinhibitory treatment, algae from the estuary showed a low effective quantum yield but a high potential to recover their maximum photosynthetic efficiency. Contrary to this, the relatively high effective quantum yield of open sea algae under photoinhibitory treatment is accompanied by a low final recovery of maximum photosynthetic efficiency. These phenomena are discussed with respect to nutrient supply, algal class composition and to different strategies of algae to react to light stress. Literature data of summer primary productivity of open sea and coastal algae are compared with our data on electron transport rates. This revealed a low influence of photoinhibitory effects on productivity.     

Discovery of an endophytic alga in Ginkgo biloba

Although intracellular associations with mycorrhizal fungi are known for Ginkgo biloba, no other endosymbiotic relationships have ever been reported for this "living fossil." A protoplast culture derived from haploid explants has now revealed the existence of a green alga in vitro, whose eukaryotic status was confirmed by transmission electron microscopic studies. Phylogenetic 18S rDNA sequence analyses showed this alga to be closely related to the lichen photobiont Coccomyxa. Algae, which in host cells exist as more or less undifferentiated "precursor" forms, proliferated within necrosing G. biloba cells of a subculture derived from a zygotic embryo and were finally released into the medium. Light and electron microscopic observations showed that G. biloba cells rapidly filled up with countless green particles whose number increased up to the bursting of the hypertrophic host cells. At the beginning of reproduction no algae were visible in the nutritive medium, demonstrating that the proliferation started inside the G. biloba cells and excluding the possibility of an exogenous contamination. Occasionally, mature algae together with their precursor forms were detected by transmission electron microscopy in intact host cells of a green callus. The algae were easily identified by their similarity to the cultured algae. Eukaryotic algae have never been reported to date to reside inside higher plant cells, whereas several algal associations are well known from the animal kingdom.     

Are Algae Relevant to the Detritus-Based Food Web in Tank-Bromeliads?

We assessed the occurrence of algae in five species of tank-bromeliads found in contrasting environmental sites in a Neotropical, primary rainforest around the Nouragues Research Station, French Guiana. The distributions of both algal abundance and biomass were examined based on physical parameters, the morphological characteristics of bromeliad species and with regard to the structure of other aquatic microbial communities held in the tanks. Algae were retrieved in all of the bromeliad species with mean densities ranging from ～10(2) to 10(4) cells/mL. Their biomass was positively correlated to light exposure and bacterial biomass. Algae represented a tiny component of the detrital food web in shaded bromeliads but accounted for up to 30 percent of the living microbial carbon in the tanks of Catopsis berteroniana, located in a highly exposed area. Thus, while nutrient supplies are believed to originate from wind-borne particles and trapped insects (i.e., allochtonous organic matter), our results indicate that primary producers (i.e., autochtonous organic matter) are present in this insectivorous bromeliad. Using a 24-h incubation of size-fractionated and manipulated samples from this plant, we evaluated the impact of mosquito foraging on algae, other microorganisms and rotifers. The prey assemblages were greatly altered by the predation of mosquito larvae. Grazing losses indicated that the dominant algal taxon, Bumilleriopsis sp., like protozoa and rotifers, is a significant part of the diet of mosquito larvae. We conclude that algae are a relevant functional community of the aquatic food web in C. berteroniana and might form the basis of a complementary non-detrital food web.     

湿地中的藻类生态学研究进展

从湿地中藻类的种群结构、藻类在湿地中的功能、湿地中的藻类生产力及其影响因素等方面综述了天然湿地中的藻类生态学研究进展．湿地植物区系主要有附泥藻类、附植藻类、后周丛藻类和浮游植物4种类型,其中常见的是附泥藻类的硅藻、绿藻和蓝藻．藻类最显著的作用是作为湿地食物网中的初级生产者,也作为湿地环境污染的生物指示物．影响藻类生产力的因素有水力学因素、营养、温度、光、大型植物及草食动物和其它动物．未来对藻类的研究应侧重于湿地藻类生物多样性、藻类生物量、生产力、种群组成的环境控制及其相互关系,以及藻类作为水环境及湿地污染程度指标的研究,“基因治藻”也将是未来研究的新方向．     

微藻种质资源库——藻类科学研究和产业发展的重要平台

微藻是指一类形态微小, 能够进行光合作用, 以单细胞或简单多细胞形式存在的藻类。作为一类重要的生物资源, 活体微藻的保藏和共享服务是开展藻类科学研究和藻类产业发展的必要平台和基础。坐落于中国科学院水生生物研究所的淡水藻种库(FACHB-Collection)正式成立于1973年, 1996年作为创会成员加入中国科学院典型培养物保藏委员会; 2019年成为国家水生生物种质资源库的核心成员。该库保藏逾3400株微藻, 隶属于9门169属。年均为国内外用户提供2500株藻株, 并提供藻种鉴定、分离纯化和培养技术等方面的服务和咨询。文章回顾了国际微藻种质资源库的发展历史和现状, 介绍了国内微藻种质资源保藏情况, 着重介绍国家水生生物种质资源库——淡水藻种库在库藏藻株多样性、共享服务、藻株无菌化、超低温保藏技术及优良品种选育与应用等方面的进展, 瞄准提升我国在藻类学研究和藻类产业研发的竞争力, 提出了藻种资源库未来发展的建议。     

Photobioreactors for mass cultivation of algae

Algae have attracted much interest for production of foods, bioactive compounds and also for their usefulness in cleaning the environment. In order to grow and tap the potentials of algae, efficient photobioreactors are required. Although a good number of photobioreactors have been proposed, only a few of them can be practically used for mass production of algae. One of the major factors that limits their practical application in algal mass cultures is mass transfer. Thus, a thorough understanding of mass transfer rates in photobioreactors is necessary for efficient operation of mass algal cultures. In this review article, various photobioreactors that are very promising for mass production of algae are discussed.     

Non-siliceous algae in a five meter core from Lake Kinneret (Israel)

The composition and succession of non-siliceous algae, studied in a five meter core from Lake Kinneret (Israel), are described. Only Chlorophyta species were recorded, probably due to the standard palynological sample processing which was used. In the lower part of the core, from the bottom to 300 cm (interval 5500–2500 years B.P.), Botryococcus braunii was the only common alga. Relevant changes in algal diversity and abundance occur at 300 cm. Many species of green algae were recorded for the first time (Pediastrum, Scenedesmus, Coelastrum, etc.). These changes may be related to an increase in nutrient concentration as a consequence of cultural disturbance. In the interval 300-0 cm, a succession of Pediastrum species is followed. The recovered green algae are extant in the present plankton of Lake Kinneret. They also constitute an important part of the algae found in the profundal sediments today.