Universität zu Köln

Windisch, Heidrun S. and Fink, Patrick ORCID: 0000-0002-5927-8977 (2018). The molecular basis of essential fatty acid limitation in Daphnia magna: A transcriptomic approach. Mol. Ecol., 27 (4). S. 871 - 886. HOBOKEN: WILEY. ISSN 1365-294X

Full text not available from this repository.

Abstract

It is widely accepted that in many food webs, the trophic transfer efficiency among primary producers and herbivores is determined by the nutritional value of primary producers. In pelagic freshwater and marine ecosystems, secondary production by herbivorous crustacean zooplankton is often limited by the seston's content of essential omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega 3 PUFAs). However, little is known about the genetic network behind the positive relationship between phytoplankton omega 3 PUFA content and zooplankton growth and reproduction. In our experimental study, we analysed gene expression changes of the freshwater cladoceran Daphnia magna under different food regimes differing in their omega 3 PUFA composition. To disentangle omega 3 PUFA effects from other factors, we fed D. magna with different pure phytoplankton cultures (i.e., algal and cyanobacterial diets) with or without supplementing the essential omega 3 PUFA eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). As hypothesized, we observed enhanced growth on diets supplemented with EPA. We applied an Illumina RNA-seq approach to D. magna from different diet treatments to find and monitor genes that are regulated dependent on EPA availability. Of 26,646 potential protein products (mapped to the D. magna genome), we identified transcriptomic signatures driven by the different food sources. Further analyses revealed specific candidate genes involved in EPA metabolism, irrespective of the basal food source. This allows a first functional annotation of previously uncharacterized genes involved in the EPA-specific response of D. magna and may finally provide a link to molecular processes connected to omega 3 PUFA metabolism and conversion and thus trophic transfer efficiency in pelagic food webs.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Windisch, Heidrun S. UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Fink, Patrick UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0002-5927-8977 UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-197050
DOI:	10.1111/mec.14498
Journal or Publication Title:	Mol. Ecol.
Volume:	27
Number:	4
Page Range:	S. 871 - 886
Date:	2018
Publisher:	WILEY
Place of Publication:	HOBOKEN
ISSN:	1365-294X
Language:	English
Faculty:	Unspecified
Divisions:	Unspecified
Subjects:	no entry
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language FRESH-WATER; NUTRITIONAL CONSTRAINTS; DELTA-6 DESATURASE; FOOD QUALITY; LONG-CHAIN; GROWTH; PHYTOPLANKTON; AVAILABILITY; TEMPERATURE; DIET Multiple languages Biochemistry & Molecular Biology; Ecology; Evolutionary Biology Multiple languages
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/19705