The ecological stoichiometry of toxins produced by harmful cyanobacteria: an experimental test of the carbon-nutrient balance hypothesis

TY - JOUR

T1 - The ecological stoichiometry of toxins produced by harmful cyanobacteria: an experimental test of the carbon-nutrient balance hypothesis

AU - Van de Waal, D.B.

AU - Verspagen, J.M.H.

AU - Lürling, M.

AU - Van Donk, E.

AU - Visser, P.M.

AU - Huisman, J.

N1 - Reporting year: 2009 Metis note: 4621;CL; AqE; file:///L:/Endnotedatabases/NIOOPUB/pdfs/PDFS2009\DeWaal_ea_4621.pdf

PY - 2009

Y1 - 2009

N2 - The elemental composition of primary producers reflects the availability of light, carbon and nutrients in their environment. According to the carbon-nutrient balance hypothesis, this has implications for the production of secondary metabolites. To test this hypothesis, we investigated a family of toxins, known as microcystins, produced by harmful cyanobacteria. The strain Microcystis aeruginosa HUB 5-2-4, which produces several microcystin variants of different N:C stoichiometry, was cultured in chemostats supplied with various combinations of nitrate and CO2. Excess supply of both nitrogen and carbon yielded high cellular N:C ratios accompanied by high cellular contents of total microcystin and the nitrogen-rich variant microcystin-RR. Comparable patterns were found in Microcystis-dominated lakes, where the relative microcystin-RR content increased with the seston N:C ratio. In total, our results are largely consistent with the carbon-nutrient balance hypothesis, and warn that a combination of rising CO2 and nitrogen enrichment will affect the microcystin composition of harmful cyanobacteria.

AB - The elemental composition of primary producers reflects the availability of light, carbon and nutrients in their environment. According to the carbon-nutrient balance hypothesis, this has implications for the production of secondary metabolites. To test this hypothesis, we investigated a family of toxins, known as microcystins, produced by harmful cyanobacteria. The strain Microcystis aeruginosa HUB 5-2-4, which produces several microcystin variants of different N:C stoichiometry, was cultured in chemostats supplied with various combinations of nitrate and CO2. Excess supply of both nitrogen and carbon yielded high cellular N:C ratios accompanied by high cellular contents of total microcystin and the nitrogen-rich variant microcystin-RR. Comparable patterns were found in Microcystis-dominated lakes, where the relative microcystin-RR content increased with the seston N:C ratio. In total, our results are largely consistent with the carbon-nutrient balance hypothesis, and warn that a combination of rising CO2 and nitrogen enrichment will affect the microcystin composition of harmful cyanobacteria.

U2 - 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2009.01383.x

DO - 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2009.01383.x

M3 - Article

SN - 1461-023X

VL - 12

SP - 1326

EP - 1335

JO - Ecology Letters

JF - Ecology Letters

IS - 12

ER -