Enzymatic degradation of poly([R,S] β-hydroxybutyrate)

The synthetic analogue of a bacterially produced polyester, poly(-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) was synthesized from racemic -butyrolactone using anin situ trimethyl aluminum-water catalyst. The polymer was fractionated into samples differing in molecular weight and isotactic diad content. The latter was closely related to degree of crystallinity. The biodegradation of these fractions were examined by monitoring mass loss over time in the presence of anAlcaligenes faecalis T1 extracellular bacterial poly(-hydroxybutyrate) depolymerase. The fraction with high isotactic diad tacticity content showed little or no degradation over a 50 hour incubation period, whereas the fraction of intermediate isotactic diad content degraded in a continuous steady fashion at a rate that was less than that for bacterial PHB. The low isotactic diad fraction underwent a rapid initial degradation, followed by no further mass loss. The presence of stereoblocks in the polymer structure of the various fractions was an influence on the degree of susceptibility towards degradation and is related to sample crystallinity.     

Plankton inhabiting the surface layer of the southern and southwestern lagoon of New Caledonia

In the southern and southwestern coral reef lagoon of New Caledonia and the adjacent oceanic waters, 42 neuston samples were collected from the upper surface layer (0 to 10 cm) along nine transects from the coast to the coral barrier reef and the open ocean immediately beyond the reef, in March and April 1979. There was a progressive numerical decrease in zooplankton densities from the coast to the reef and from the reef to the open sea. Generally, 80 to 95% of the surface plankton consisted of holoplankton and 5 to 20% of meroplankton. Zooplankton was very abundant in littoral bays with a marked eutrophication. In a few samples collected in very shallow waters close to coral patches, cladocerans were numerous and constituted up to 75% of the total plankton, whilst in other samples collected above greater depths, copepods made up 60 to 85% of the total plankton. In the coral reef lagoon of south and southwest New Caledonia, typically hyponeustonic copepods (pontellids) often comprised 5% of the total copepod populations.     

Changes in the digestive gland of Euphausia superba during short-term starvation: lipid class,fatty acid and sterol content and composition

During a period of short-term (19 d) starvation, total lipid in the digestive gland of Euphausia superba Dana decreased from 21 to 9% dry weight. Total lipid per digestive gland decreased significantly during starvation compared to Day 0 individuals, falling from 1960 (±172) to 385 (±81) g. Polar lipid was the major lipid class utilised during starvation, falling from 1510 (±225) to 177 (±46) g per digestive gland (76 to 45%). Absolute levels of triacylglycerol fell from 300 (±41) to 76 (±5) g; however, relative levels remained unchanged. The relative level of free fatty acid increased significantly with starvation (4 to 39%) with absolute levels ranging from 79 (±1) to 156 (±20) g per digestive gland. Absolute levels of all fatty acids per digestive gland declined continually until the end of the starvation period. The long-chain polyunsaturated acids eicosapentaenoic (20:53) and docosahexaenoic (22:63), decreased with starvation from 37 to 26% and 15 to 10%, respectively whereas the saturated fatty acid, palmitic acid (16:0), increased from 15 to 20%. Cholesterol, the major sterol in this organ, increased from 17 (±20) to 44 (±13) g per digestive gland by Day 3, and by Day 19 had returned to levels found in the digestive gland of Day 0 individuals. Desmosterol followed a similar pattern to cholesterol, increasing from 3 (±1) g per digestive gland on Day 0 to 11 (±4) g on Day 3, and falling to 2 (±1) g on Day 19. Other sterols in the digestive gland, predominantly of algal origin, fell from the levels found in Day 0 individuals to near zero amounts by Day 6. The digestive gland of E. superba plays a dynamic role during shortterm starvation in terms of lipid content and composition. The relative levels of polar lipids, free fatty acids and cholesterol in the digestive gland may provide reliable indices of the nutritional condition of E. superba in the field. Sterols in the digestive gland are indicative of recent dietary composition of krill, and may also be used to quantify dietary input from individual phytoplanktonic species.     

Larval development in the Antarctic nemertean Parborlasia corrugatus (Heteronemertea: Lineidae)

Embryonic and larval development were followed from fertilisation to settlement in the Antarctic heteronemertean Parborlasia corrugatus (McIntosh, 1876). The first cleavage occurred 10 to 15 h after fertilisation, and the second at 17 h. Larvae hatched at the gastrula stage, between 170 and 200 h post-fertilisation, and were 150 m in diameter. Early larval stages aggregated in dense groups near the surface of incubation vessels and were positively phototactic. Early pilidium larvae were recognisable 435 h post-fertilisation. They were 155×152 m in size, and possessed a complete apical tuft of cilia and a full marginal band of locomotory cilia. At this stage, the gust was visible through the body wall, and the mouth was open and was 40 m in diameter. Late pilidia, 222×193 m in size, were helmet-shaped. They had an apical tuft over 100 m long, and possessed a lobed marginal band of locomotory cilia. Pilidia were observed aggregating close to the bottom of incubation vessels 1200 to 1350 h (50 to 56 d) after fertilisation, and this was interpreted as settlement behaviour. At this stage, the apical tuft had been lost and they were highly contractile, being capable of compressing their bodies. However, neither developing juveniles within the larval envelope nor hatched juveniles were observed. Pilidia consumed the microalgae Tetraselmis suecica, Thalassiosira pseudonana and Isochrysis galbana. They also fed on particulate organic material < 1 m in size, as shown by the presence of material in the guts of larvae offered filtered extracts of algal cultures. There was some indication that larvae could use dissolved organic material, since pilidia held in seawater with organic material removed did not survive as long as those in filtered seawater or in filtered water with added amino acids. However, the only larvae to exhibit settlement behaviour in the feeding experiments were those offered Tetraselmis succica and Thalassiosira pseudonana, and these required a longer development time to reach this stage than pilidia in the standard cultures, where a mixed algal diet was offered.     

Reproductive cycle of Golfingia margaritacea,a bipolar sipunculan,in subantarctic water

The reproductive cycle of the bipolar sipunculan Golfingia margaritacea collected from Ushuaia, Argentina (54°49 S; 68°13W) in 1986 and 1987 is reported. The population sampled showed a sex ratio of 1:1. Males, however, frequently outnumbered females. Measurements of coelomic oocytes delineated an annual reproductive cycle. Small oocytes were present in the coelom all year: a subpopulation began to increase size about the middle of spring and reached its maximum size in late summer. Spawns may occur from the end February to April. May is characterized by resorption of large oocytes. Monthy monitoring of the gonads revealed mitotic activity and a continuous release of gametocytes to the coelom. Parasites were detected in the gonads. Large coelomic oocytes were also present in the coelom during the same season in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, but egg sizes were significantly larger in boreal populations.     

Cellular and ultrastructural changes in the endoderm of the temperate sea anemone Anemonia viridis as a result of increased temperature

Exposure of the temperate sea anemone Anemonia viridis Forskål to increased seawater temperature (from 16 to 26°C) reduced the lysosomal latency of coelenterate tissues. Lysosomes in the mesenterial filaments of anemones were destabilised by increased temperature, with greater destabilisation in heat-shocked symbiotic anemones than in heat-shocked aposymbiotic anemones in the early stages of the experiment. Lysosomal enzyme activity in zooxanthellae from heat-shocked symbiotic anemones was associated with the algal membranes and the cytoplasm of degenerate algal cells. While the relationship between host coelenterate and symbiotic alga may confer many benefits under normal conditions, comparison of the responses of symbiotic and aposymbiotic anemones to heat shock suggests that there may be disadvantages for symbiotic anemones under stress.     

Major primary stages of biomineralization in radular teeth of the limpet Lottia gigantea

The radula (feeding organ) of the limpet Lottia gigantea is a membraneous ribbon to which are attached up to 150 transverse rows of teeth. The organic matrix of the teeth is impregnated with inorganic salts (Fe, Si, Ca). In its posterior end, the radula originates from a radular gland which is coiled dorsally, where long odontoblast cells secrete the tooth and the radular membrane. Teeth mature gradually. The organic matrix of this complex was stained homogeneously in the first five rows (hematoxylin-eosin). From Row 6 onward, the tooth became demarcated from the radular membrane by forming segments within the matrix of the radular membrane. The cusp's organic matrix milieu was histologically divided into two main domains, internal and external, each one consisting of fibrillar milieu. Teeth are embedded within the tall columnar superior epithelium, which superimposes the cusps. Iron-bearing granules started to appear in these cells beginning at Rows 7 to 10, increasing in number to Row 20 and continuing to at least Row 65. Iron proceeded to infiltrate first into the internal part of the cusp at Row 15. The outer part of the cusp was mineralized beginning at Rows 22 to 27. At about Row 30, the cusp was heavily mineralized by iron. Calcium was deposited into the radular membrane and tooth bases from the most posterior part. It is concluded that radula biomineralization is subject to highly complex but precisely controlled cytological-biochemical processes and that different parts of each young tooth are subjected simultaneously to different biomineralization pathways. Specimens used in this study were collected in 1984 from the intertidal zone at La Jolla, California.     

In situ characterization of phytoplankton from vertical profiles of fluorescence emission spectra

Vertical profiling of the upper ocean with a laser/fiber optic fluorometer enabled the determination of fluorescence emission spectra of photosynthetic pigments over small vertical scales. Simultaneous acquisition of phycoerythrin (PE) and chlorophyll (chl) emission spectra allowed in situ differentiation between PE-containing cells (cryptomonads and cyanobacteria) and other chl-containing autotrophs. Further, fluorescence spectral peak shifts associated with different species of PE-containing cells resulted in even finer scale in situ taxonomic differentiation. We found that the phycoerythrin fluorescence emission maxima shifted from 578 nm near the surface, to 585 m at the base of the shallow thermocline (30% light level), and to 590 nm below the thermocline at the base of the euphotic zone (1% light level). These shifts in peak emission coincided with a taxonomic change in the PE-containing cells (as determined from analysis of discrete bottle samples) from a greater proportion of Synechococcus spp. in the upper water column to a greater proportion of cryptomonads at the base of the euphotic zone. These results indicate that the composition of the phytoplankton assemblage may be assessed in situ without sample collection.     

Age determination and growth of the bonnethead shark Sphyrna tiburo: a comparison of two populations

From July 1982 to December 1986, a study of the age and growth of the bonnethead shark Sphyrna tiburo was conducted in Tampa and Florida Bays, Florida, USA. Tetracycline-injected sharks held in captivity and, to a lesser extent, tagged, released and recaptured, were utilized for validating the annual nature of the rings (herein defined as the narrow, translucent regions) appearing on vertebral centra. The technique was validated for all age groups (0 to 6+yr) included in the study. Marginal increment analysis likewise suggested annual ring formation. The rings formed during the winter, when water temperatures were lowest. Using the vertebral ring aging-technique, von Bertalanffy growth curves for males and females from both tampa and Florida Bays were constructed. Growth of sharks born and held in captivity demonstrated that the male and female growth curves diverge after 1 yr and that mean sizes at age are statistically distinct after 2 yr. In both populations, females grew to larger sizes tha males and apparently are longer-lived. Reproductively mature females from Tampa Bay were significantly larger than those from Florida Bay.     

A “source” for asteroid larvae?: recruitment of Pisaster ochraceus,Pycnopodia helianthoides and Dermasterias imbricata in Nootka Sound,British Columbia

A major recruitment of the forcipulate asteroid Pisaster ochraceus was observed in September 1987 in the channel leading into Boca del Infierno, a semi-enclosed bay on the southeastern shore of Nootka Island, on the west coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Newly settled recruits were observed at high densities subtidally in the channel (mean maximal density=1.23x10⁴m^-2) and at nearby sites. Subsequent surveys in 1988 to 1991 and size-frequency distributions of adults indicated strong yearly recruitment of P. ochraceus. Recruits of P. ochraceus were found on all available substrata, including hard and soft bottoms and on benthic algae. The initial food of the recruits included newly settled mussels (Mytilus sp.), snails and barnacles. Recruitment of the forcipulate Pycnopodia helianthoides was observed in 1987 to 1989 and in 1991, while recruitment of the spinulosan Dermasterias imbricata occurred only in 1988. High densities of planktonic bipinnaria larvae were found in the bay of Boca del Infierno in late May. We hypothesise that the high density population of adult P. ochraceus found in the channel of Boca del Infierno spawns synchronously and most of the resulting embryos and larvae are retained within the bay. This area may act as a source of larvae that then disperse locally. Post-recruitment mortality was estimated by comparing the density of recruits of P. ochraceus in 1987 with the numbers of juveniles presumed to be 1 yr old in 1988. Post-recruitment mortality was in excess of 97% with few individuals surviving to 1 yr. Moreover, even after the first year, mortality or emigration of the juveniles resulted in the almost complete loss of the 1-yr cohort at North Saavedra between 1988 and 1989. This study provides evidence that the P. ochraceus population in this area of Nootka Island may not be open, but may be regularly supplied from a source of larvae in the bay of Boca del Infierno. Post-settlement processes may, however, have significant effects on the local population, resulting in a poor correlation between the rate of recruitment and the incorporation of yr-1 + individuals into the adult population.