Abstract
Several species of the marine diatom Pseudo-nitzschia can produce the neurotoxin domoic acid that is responsible for the seafood-borne illness amnesic shellfish poisoning in humans, marine wildlife mortalities and prolonged closures of fisheries resulting in economic losses to coastal communities. Since the year 2000, Pseudo-nitzschia species have been monitored in the Pacific Ocean with the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR). We used a combination of scanning electron microscopy with high-throughput and Sanger sequencing of CPR survey samples to compare the diversity of phytoplankton, including Pseudo-nitzschia species, from the north-eastern Pacific Ocean over 3 climatically different years: 2002, 2005 and 2008. A Pseudo-nitzschia-specific primer set targeting a partial region of the large subunit ribosomal DNA (rDNA) revealed spatially separated communities of Pseudo-nitzschia. The coastal region was dominated by a diverse array of P. fraudulenta unique sequences (operational taxonomic units), whereas the offshore region was rich in P. multiseries and contained a wide range of other Pseudo-nitzschia taxa, many not previously observed in this region. In 2008, exceptionally cold sea surface temperatures were recorded, influenced by a strong negative Pacific Decadal Oscillation signal. In that year, a more diverse assemblage of species was present in a spring open water sample, whereas P. fraudulenta was unusually rare from a coastal autumn sample. This is the first application of high-throughput genetic methods to uncover patterns of Pseudo-nitzschia genetic diversity from archival CPR samples, demonstrating the value of using CPR for plankton community analysis in rarely sampled regions of the oceans.
DOI
10.3354/meps12711
Publication Date
2018-11-15
Publication Title
Marine Ecology Progress Series
Volume
606
Publisher
Inter-Research Science Center
ISSN
1616-1599
Embargo Period
2024-11-22
First Page
7
Last Page
28
Recommended Citation
Stern, R., Moore, S., Trainer, V., & et al. (2018) 'Spatial and temporal patterns of Pseudo-nitzschia genetic diversity in the North Pacific Ocean from the Continuous Plankton Recorder survey', Marine Ecology Progress Series, 606, pp. 7-28. Inter-Research Science Center: Available at: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps12711
