Glycerolipids and fatty acids of D. membranacea (Dictyotales) were analysed. The betaine lipid DGTA and the glycolipids MGOG, DGDG and SQDG were major components. The phospholipids PE, PG, PI and PHEG were present in minor amounts only. This lipid pattern, which is characterised by the presence of DGTA and the absence of PC, has been found exclusively in brown algae belonging to the orders Dict...

A striking characteristic of endemic Antarctic brown algae is their broad vertical distribution. This feature is largely determined by the shade adaptation in order to cope with the seasonal variation in light availability. However, during spring-summer months, when light penetrates deep in the water column these organisms have to withstand high levels of solar radiation, including UV. In the p...

Despite the widespread use of carbon stable isotopes to distinguish among potential energy pathways in food webs, their usefulness is limited where potential basal carbon sources are numerous and diverse. We measured carbon isotope values of the major fisheries species, the mostly carnivorous Scylla serrata (giant mud crab), and potential basal, autotrophic sources supporting the food web. Conv...

Biodiversity loss has spurred the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning research over a range of ecosystems. In Antarctica, however, the relationship of taxonomic and functional diversity with ecosystem properties (e.g., community biomass) has received less attention, despite the presence of sharp and dynamic environmental stress gradients that might modulate these properties. Here, we investigate...

Fucus serratus is a common brown algae which occurs all round the British coast. At low tide male and female plants release antheridia and oogonia into the seawater (1) and fertilization occurs as the tide rises causing release of the encapsulated spermatozoa and eggs. In contrast to mammalian sperm which have been widely studied very little is known about the mechanism of activation of the spe...

BACKGROUND Many tropical marine macroalgae are reported from all three ocean basins, though these very wide distributions may simply be an artifact resulting from inadequate taxonomy that fails to take into account cryptic diversity. Alternatively, pantropical distributions challenge the belief of limited intrinsic dispersal capacity of marine seaweeds and the effectiveness of the north-south o...

Ectocarpus has emerged as a model organism for the brown algae and a broad range of genetic and genomic resources are being generated for this species. The aim of the work presented here was to evaluate two mutagenesis protocols based on ultraviolet irradiation and ethyl methanesulphonate treatment using genome resequencing to measure the number, type and distribution of mutations generated by ...

The fucose-containing sulfated polysaccharides (SP) from brown algae exhibit a wide range of bioactivities and are, therefore, considered promising candidates for health-supporting and medicinal applications. A critical issue is their availability in high, reproducible quality. The aim of the present study was to fractionate and characterize the SP extracted from Saccharina latissima (S.l.-SP) ...

Levels of radionuclides in seven species of marine brown algae and Ulva were determined to establish a baseline for the Northern Pacific Ocean/Bering Sea (Aleutian Islands). There were differences in levels among algal species and locations (Amchitka Island vs Kiska Island). No values were above the minimum detectable activity (MDA) level for (137)Cs, (129)I, (60)Co, (152)Eu, (90)Sr, and (99)Tc...

The aim of this study was to estimate, for the first time, abundance and degree of movement of leafy seadragons, Phycodurus eques, at one location in southern Australia. The pattern of wear and damage to the leafy appendages was found to vary among individuals but was not a reliable method of identification of individual fish over long periods. Photographic evidence of individual facial marking...