Allelopathic effects of Ulva linza on marine phytoplankton and identification of the allelochemicals

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 28; no. 33; pp. 45714 - 45723
• Main Authors: Lv, Mengchen, Yuan, Mengqi, Wang, Ying, Tang, Xuexi, Zhao, Yan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.09.2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Algae; Allelochemicals; Allelopathy; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Chemical composition; Coastal zone; Community structure; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Fatty acids; Green tides; Palmitic acid; Phytoplankton; Plankton; Population growth; Research Article; Ulva linza; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Allelopathy; Green tide; Phytoplankton; Fatty acids; P. minimum; P. helgolandica; Ulva linza
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-13734-8

Green tides have been increasing in frequency and severity in coastal areas in recent years, and thus, the adverse effects of green tides on the environment have attracted much research attention. Allelopathy is one of the most significant effects of green tide algae on the surrounding organisms. In this study, a series of experiments were developed to fully investigate the allelopathic effects of the green tide alga Ulva linza on two common coastal phytoplankton species and to isolate and identify the chemical compositions of the allelochemicals. Our results indicated that the fresh tissue, dry powder, and aqueous extracts all inhibited the population growth of the two experimental phytoplankton species, indicating the occurrence of allelopathy; further analysis of the allelochemicals identified multiple kinds of fatty acids as allelopathic compounds, in which the most abundant ones were hexadecanoic acid; 9Z, 12Z, 15Z-octadecatetrienoic acid; and 9E-octadecenoic acid. Our findings enrich the database for research on allelopathy between marine green tide algae and phytoplankton. Both algae and phytoplankton could increase their own competitive abilities during bloom formation, thereby changing the phytoplankton community structure.