Parrish Christopher C
Department of Ocean Sciences, Memorial University, St. John's, NL A1C 5S7, Canada.
Mar Drugs. 2025 Jan 21;23(2):52. doi: 10.3390/md23020052.
Lipids form energy storage depots, cellular barriers and signaling molecules. They are generated and metabolized by enzymes under the influence of biotic and abiotic factors, and some-the long-chain polyunsaturated ω3 and ω6 fatty acids and cholesterol-are essential for optimal health in marine organisms. In addition, lipids have direct and indirect roles in the control of buoyancy in marine fauna ranging from copepods to whales. Phytoplankton account for about half of the planet's carbon fixation, and about half of that carbon goes into lipids. Lipids are an important component of the ocean's ability to sequester carbon away from the atmosphere through sinking and especially after transfer to zooplankton. Phytoplankton are the main suppliers of ω3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in the marine environment. They also supply cholesterol and many phytosterols to ocean ecosystems; however, genomics is indicating that members of the Cnidaria, Rotifera, Annelida, and Mollusca phyla also have the endogenous capacity for the de novo synthesis of ω3 PUFAs as well as phytosterols. It has been predicted that ω3 long-chain PUFAs will decrease in marine organisms with climate change, with implications for human consumption and for carbon sequestration; however, the responses of ω3 PUFA supply to future conditions are likely to be quite diverse.
脂质形成能量储存库、细胞屏障和信号分子。它们在生物和非生物因素的影响下由酶生成和代谢，其中一些——长链多不饱和ω3和ω6脂肪酸以及胆固醇——对海洋生物的最佳健康至关重要。此外，脂质在从桡足类到鲸鱼等海洋动物的浮力控制中具有直接和间接作用。浮游植物约占地球碳固定量的一半，其中约一半的碳进入脂质。脂质是海洋通过下沉，尤其是在转移到浮游动物后，将碳从大气中封存的能力的重要组成部分。浮游植物是海洋环境中ω3多不饱和脂肪酸（PUFAs）的主要供应者。它们还为海洋生态系统提供胆固醇和许多植物甾醇；然而，基因组学表明，刺胞动物门、轮虫动物门、环节动物门和软体动物门的成员也具有从头合成ω3多不饱和脂肪酸以及植物甾醇的内在能力。据预测，随着气候变化，海洋生物体内的ω3长链多不饱和脂肪酸将会减少，这对人类消费和碳封存都有影响；然而，ω3多不饱和脂肪酸供应对未来状况的反应可能会非常多样。
