Bioprospecting Marine Plankton

Bioprospecting Marine Plankton

The ocean dominates the surface of our planet and plays a major role in regulating the biosphere. For example, the microscopic photosynthetic organisms living within provide 50% of the oxygen we breathe, and much of our food and mineral resources are extracted from the ocean. In a time of ecological crisis and major changes in our society, it is essential to turn our attention towards the sea t...

Climate change and marine plankton.

Understanding how climate change will affect the planet is a key issue worldwide. Questions concerning the pace and impacts of climate change are thus central to many ecological and biogeochemical studies, and addressing the consequences of climate change is now high on the list of priorities for funding agencies. Here, we review the interactions between climate change and plankton communities,...

Mixotrophy in the Marine Plankton.

Mixotrophs are important components of the bacterioplankton, phytoplankton, microzooplankton, and (sometimes) zooplankton in coastal and oceanic waters. Bacterivory among the phytoplankton may be important for alleviating inorganic nutrient stress and may increase primary production in oligotrophic waters. Mixotrophic phytoflagellates and dinoflagellates are often dominant components of the pla...

Marine Plankton Food Webs and Climate Change

• Some plankton, such as diatoms, grow better at cooler temperatures. Warming may cause other, less palatable, species to replace them, depriving zooplankton and menhaden of their primary food source. • Because phytoplankton are linked to freshwater and nutrient inputs, draught will likely decrease their abundance. Also, when nutrients are reduced, smaller phytoplankton replace diatoms, and the...

An Update on Marine Genetic Resources: Scientific Research, Commercial Uses and a Database on Marine Bioprospecting