Seagrass fatty acid profiles as a sensitive indicator of climate settings across seasons and latitudes

Pedro Beca-Carretero*, Freddy Guihéneuf, Dorte Krause-Jensen, Dagmar B. Stengel

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaperJournal articleResearchpeer-review

15 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Zostera marina is a dominant meadow-forming seagrass in temperate regions in the northern hemisphere. Here, fatty acid content and composition, and pigmentation, in leaves were evaluated across temporal (April, July, November −2015 and January-2016) and latitudinal (Greenland to southern Spain) environmental gradients. Content of total fatty acids (TFA) in samples collected in Ireland during warmer periods (summer) was 2–3 times lower than in winter and exhibited a lower proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), which have high high-nutritional value relative to saturated fatty acids (SAFA). The latitudinal comparison (Greenland to southern Spain) revealed a clear reduction in the proportion n-3 PUFAs and an increase in n-6 PUFA and SAFA, which correlated with the rise in temperature towards southern locations, which correlated with the rise in temperature towards south. Results indicate that future warming may negatively affect its lipid nutritional value. These results demonstrate the capacity of seagrasses to adjust their lipid composition to achieve optimal membrane functionality, suggesting the potential use of FA as an eco-physiological indicator of global change conditions. The results also suggest that future warming may negatively affect the lipid nutritional value of seagrasses.

Original languageEnglish
Article number105075
JournalMarine Environmental Research
Volume161
ISSN0141-1136
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2020

Keywords

  • Biochemical plasticity
  • Heatwave
  • Ireland
  • Nutritional value
  • Omega-3
  • Photosynthetic pigments
  • Polyunsaturated fatty acids
  • Saturated fatty acids
  • Zostera marina

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Seagrass fatty acid profiles as a sensitive indicator of climate settings across seasons and latitudes'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this