Quantitative response of Alexandrium catenella cyst dormancy to cold exposure
Date
2018-06-05Author
Fischer, Alexis D.
Concept link
Brosnahan, Michael L.
Concept link
Anderson, Donald M.
Concept link
Metadata
Show full item recordCitable URI
https://hdl.handle.net/1912/10615As published
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.protis.2018.06.001Keyword
Resting cyst; Dinoflagellate; Dormancy; Chilling; Germination; Endogenous clockAbstract
Many dinoflagellate cysts experience dormancy, a reversible state that prevents germination during unfavorable periods. Several of these species also cause harmful algal blooms (HABs), so a quantitative understanding of dormancy cycling is desired for better prediction and mitigation of bloom impacts. This study examines the effect of cold exposure on the duration of dormancy in Alexandrium catenella, a HAB dinoflagellate that causes paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP). Mature, dormant cysts from Nauset Marsh (Cape Cod, MA USA) were stored at low but above freezing temperatures for up to six months. Dormancy status was then determined at regular intervals using a germination assay. Dormancy timing was variable among temperatures and was shorter in colder treatments, but the differences collapse when temperature and duration of storage are scaled by chilling-units (CU), a common horticultural predictor of plant and insect development in response to weather. Cysts within Nauset meet a well-defined chilling requirement by late January, after which they are poised to germinate with the onset of favorable conditions in spring. Cysts thus modulate their dormancy cycles in response to their temperature history, enhancing the potential for new blooms and improving this species’ adaptability to both unseasonable weather and new habitats/climate regimes.
Description
Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2018. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here under a nonexclusive, irrevocable, paid-up, worldwide license granted to WHOI. It is made available for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Protist 169 (2018): 645-661, doi:10.1016/j.protis.2018.06.001.
Collections
Suggested Citation
Preprint: Fischer, Alexis D., Brosnahan, Michael L., Anderson, Donald M., "Quantitative response of Alexandrium catenella cyst dormancy to cold exposure", 2018-06-05, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.protis.2018.06.001, https://hdl.handle.net/1912/10615Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
The physiology of dormancy and germination in cysts of the marine dinoflagellate Scrippsiella trochoidea
Binder, Brian Jeffrey (Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 1986-02)Cysts of Scrippsiella trochoidea are representative of the thick-walled non-motile resting cells produced by many dinoflagellates. Although the influence of cysts on the biology and ecology of dinoflagellates may be ... -
Ecology and physiology of dormancy in a changing world: introduction to a virtual symposium
Tarrant, Ann M. (University of Chicago Press, 2019-10-14)Dormancy is a widespread strategy used by diverse animal groups to persist through adverse environmental conditions, spread reproductive risk, and optimize seasonal phenology. Dormancy is an overarching term that refers ... -
Alexandrium catenella cyst dynamics in a coastal embayment : temperature dependence of dormancy, germination, and bloom Initiation
Fischer, Alexis D. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-06)Blooms of the dinoflagellate Alexandrium catenella cause paralytic shellfish poisoning syndrome and present an expanding public health threat. They are inoculated through the germination of benthic cysts, a process ...