BACKGROUND The hydrolysis of seaweed polysaccharides is the rate limiting step in anaerobic digestion (AD) of seaweeds. Seven different microbial inocula and a mixture of these (inoculum 8) were therefore compared in triplicate, each grown over four weeks in static culture for the ability to degrade Laminaria hyperborea seaweed and produce methane through AD. RESULTS All the inocula could deg...

Brown algal kelp species are the most efficient iodine accumulators among all living systems, with an average content of 1.0% of dry weight in Laminaria digitata, representing a ca. 30,000-fold accumulation of this element from seawater. Like other marine macroalgae, kelps are known to emit volatile short-lived organo-iodines, and molecular iodine which are believed to be a main vector of the i...

We examined the relative importance of parental nutritional condition and larval food ration on the rates of development, growth and metamorphosis of larvae of Strongylocentrotus droebacḧ iensis (Muller) in a laboratory experiment. Parents were reared for 22 months on either a high 21 ration of kelp (Laminaria spp., 6 days week ) supplemented with mussel flesh (Mytilus spp., 1 21 21 day week ) ...

The snail fauna (class Gastropoda) associated with the two kelp species Laminaria hyperborea and Saccorhiza polyschides was sampled during September and December 2009, and March 2011. Over 1000 gastropod individuals comprising 35 identified taxa were found in the 29 kelp individuals sampled in total. The attractiveness for settlement for gastropods of L. hyperborea was clearly higher than S. po...

Rubisco (ribulose-1, 5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase), a key enzyme of photosynthetic CO(2) fixation, is one of the most abundant proteins in both higher plants and algae. In this study, the differential expression of Rubisco in sporophytes and gametophytes of four seaweed species--Porphyra yezoensis, P. haitanensis, Bangia fuscopurpurea (Rhodophyte) and Laminaria japonica (Phaeophyceae)--...

Seaweeds (macroalgae) have been recently attracting more and more interest as a third generation feedstock for bioenergy and biofuels. However, several barriers impede the deployment of competitive seaweed-based energy. The high cost associated to seaweed farming and harvesting, as well as their seasonal availability and biochemical composition currently make macroalgae exploitation too expensi...

Perinatal exposure to excess iodine can lead to transient hypothyroidism in the newborn. In Japan, large quantities of iodine-rich seaweed such as kombu (Laminaria japonica) are consumed. However, effects of iodine from food consumed during the perinatal period are unknown. The concentration of iodine in serum, urine, and breast milk in addition to thyrotropin (TSH), free thyroxine (FT(4)), and...