Chemosensory response of marine flagellate towards L- and D- dissolved free amino acids generated during heavy grazing on bacteria

Autores/as

  • Begoña Ayo Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain
  • Aitziber Txakartegi Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain
  • Zuriñe Baña Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain
  • Itxaso Artolozaga Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain
  • Juan Iriberri Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Palabras clave:

Rhynchomonas nasuta, marine flagellates, L- and D-amino acids, chemosensory response, grazing, bacterivore activity

Resumen

This study investigated the generation of dissolved free amino acids (DFAA) by the bacterivorous flagellate Rhynchomonas nasuta when feeding on abundant prey. Specifically, it examined whether this flagellate protist exhibits a chemosensory response towards those amino acids. The concentrations of glycine and the L- and D-enantiomers of glutamate, serine, threonine, alanine, and leucine were determined in co-cultures of the flagellate and bacteria. Glycine, L- and D-alanine, and L-serine were found to accumulate under these conditions in amounts that correlated positively with flagellate abundance, suggesting that protists are involved in their generation. Investigations of the chemotactic response of young and old foraging protists to the same amino acids, offered in concentrations similar to those previously generated, showed that glycine elicited the strongest attraction in both age groups. Young protists were strongly attracted to all the assayed amino acids, whereas older protists maintained a high level of attraction only for glycine. These results suggest that glycine generated by protists actively grazing in bacterially enriched patches functions as an infochemical, signaling to foraging protists the presence of available prey in the aquatic environment. [Int Microbiol 2010; 13(3):151-158]

Biografía del autor/a

Begoña Ayo, Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Aitziber Txakartegi, Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Zuriñe Baña, Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Itxaso Artolozaga, Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Juan Iriberri, Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

Department of Immunology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain

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Publicado

2010-09-28

Número

Sección

Research Articles