Fisher Carolyn L, Lane Pamela D, Russell Marion, Maddalena Randy, Lane Todd W
Bioresources and Environmental Security Department, Sandia National Laboratories, P.O. Box 969, Livermore, CA 94551, USA.
Systems Biology Department, Sandia National Laboratories, P.O. Box 969, Livermore, CA 94551, USA.
Metabolites. 2020 Sep 4;10(9):361. doi: 10.3390/metabo10090361.
Microalgae produce specific chemicals indicative of stress and/or death. The aim of this study was to perform non-destructive monitoring of algal culture systems, in the presence and absence of grazers, to identify potential biomarkers of incipient pond crashes. Here, we report ten volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are robustly generated by the marine alga, , in the presence and/or absence of the marine grazer, . We cultured with and without and collected in situ volatile headspace samples using thermal desorption tubes over the course of several days. Data from four experiments were aggregated, deconvoluted, and chromatographically aligned to determine VOCs with tentative identifications made via mass spectral library matching. VOCs generated by algae in the presence of actively grazing rotifers were confirmed via pure analytical standards to be pentane, 3-pentanone, 3-methylhexane, and 2-methylfuran. Six other VOCs were less specifically associated with grazing but were still commonly observed between the four replicate experiments. Through this work, we identified four biomarkers of rotifer grazing that indicate algal stress/death. This will aid machine learning algorithms to chemically define and diagnose algal mass production cultures and save algae cultures from imminent crash to make biofuel an alternative energy possibility.
微藻会产生指示压力和/或死亡的特定化学物质。本研究的目的是在有和没有食草动物的情况下，对藻类培养系统进行非破坏性监测，以确定早期池塘崩溃的潜在生物标志物。在此，我们报告了十种挥发性有机化合物（VOCs），它们在有和/或没有海洋食草动物的情况下，由海洋藻类强烈产生。我们在有和没有[食草动物名称未给出]的情况下培养[藻类名称未给出]，并在几天的时间里使用热解吸管原位收集挥发性顶空样品。对来自四个实验的数据进行汇总、解卷积和色谱对齐，以确定通过质谱库匹配进行初步鉴定的挥发性有机化合物。通过纯分析标准物确认，在有活跃摄食的轮虫存在的情况下，藻类产生的挥发性有机化合物为戊烷、3-戊酮、3-甲基己烷和2-甲基呋喃。其他六种挥发性有机化合物与摄食的相关性较低，但在四个重复实验中仍普遍观察到。通过这项工作，我们确定了四种轮虫摄食的生物标志物，它们指示藻类的压力/死亡。这将有助于机器学习算法从化学角度定义和诊断藻类大规模生产培养，并使藻类培养避免即将到来的崩溃，从而使生物燃料成为一种替代能源的可能性。
