Stenophagy as a Pathway for the Occurrence of Unique Coral Fatty Acid Biomarkers in Higher Branches of the Marine Tree of Life: The Nudibranch Armina maculata Case

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Tetracosapolyenoic fatty acids (TPA), namely tetracosapentaenoic (24:5n-6) and tetracosahexaenoic (24:6n-3) acids, are chemotaxonomic biomarkers of octocorals (Cnidaria, Octocorallia) in the marine environment. The present study confirms the occurrence of TPA on a marine non-cnidarian taxon, the nudibranch mollusc Armina maculata. This discovery is explained by the specialized feeding regime (stenophagy) of this sea slug that preys upon the octocoral Veretillum cynomorium. The prevalence of 24:5n-6 and 24:6n-3 in the body of A. maculata was demonstrated through the analysis of specimens starved for 30 days in captivity. Since the time frame is superior to the residence time of ingested octocorals, the present findings provide empirical evidence that the reported TPA are allocated from nudibranch tissues. Here we found support for previous claims that the presence of TPA in the marine tree of life is not restricted to its lower branches, as stenophagous trophic interactions may allow its transfer to or posterior biosynthesis in more evolved taxa.

참고문헌 (Reference)

1 Calado R, "Trophic ecology of benthic marine invertebrates with bi-phasic life cycles: What are we still missing?" 71 : 1-70, 2015

2 Fontana A, "Terpene biosynthesis in the nudibranch Doriopsilla areolata" 68 : 2405-2409, 2003

3 Baptista M, "Temporal fatty acid dynamics of the octocoral Veretillum cynomorium" 161 : 178-187, 2012

4 Arts M, Brett M, Kainz M, "Lipids in aquatic ecosystems" Springer 377-, 2009

5 Guerriero A, "Isolation of the cembranoid preverecynarmin alongside some briaranes, the verecynarmins, from both the nudibranch mollusc Armina rnaculata and the octocoral Veretillum cynomorium of the East Pyrenean Mediterranean Sea" 73 : 277-283, 1990

6 Vysotskii MV, "Identification, isolation and characterization of tetracosapolyenoic acids in lipids of marine coelenterates" 1083 : 161-165, 1991

7 Imbs AB, "High level of tetracosapolyenoic fatty acids in the cold-water mollusk Tochuina tetraquetra is a result of the nudibranch feeding on soft corals" 39 : 1511-1514, 2016

8 Dembitsky VM, "Fatty-acid and phospholipid composition of freshwater mollusks Anadonta piscinalis and Limnaea fragilis from the river volga" 105 : 597-601, 1993

9 Latyshev NA, "Fatty acids of reef-building corals" 76 : 295-301, 1991

10 Svetashev VI, "Fatty acids of Heliopora coerulea and chemotaxonomic significance of tetracosapolyenoic acids in coelenterates" 119 : 73-75, 1998

11 Baretta-Bekker H, "Encyclopedia of marine sciences" Springer Science & Business Media 349-, 2012

12 Putz A, "Defensive strategies of Cladobranchia (Gastropoda, Opisthobranchia)" 27 : 1386-1402, 2010

13 Cimino G, "Chemical defense and evolutionary trends in biosynthetic capacity among dorid nudibranchs (Mollusca:Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia)" 9 : 187-207, 1999

14 Faulkner D, "Chemical defense and evolutionary ecology of dorid nudibranchs and some other opisthobranch gastropods" 13 : 295-301, 1983

15 Gavagnin M, "Can molluscs biosynthesize typical sponge metabolites? The case of the nudibranch Doriopsilla areolata" 57 : 8913-8916, 2001

16 Urban MC, "Accelerating extinction risk from climate change" 348 : 571-573, 2015

17 Figueiredo C, "3D chemoecology and chemotaxonomy of corals using fatty acid biomarkers: latitude, longitude and depth" 70 : 35-42, 2017