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Dimethylsulfide Release During Macroinvertebrate Grazing And Its Role As An Activated Chemical Defense, Kathryn L. Van Alstyne Dr., Letise T. Houser
Dimethylsulfide Release During Macroinvertebrate Grazing And Its Role As An Activated Chemical Defense, Kathryn L. Van Alstyne Dr., Letise T. Houser
Shannon Point Marine Center Faculty Publications
Almost half the biogenic sulfur emitted globally originates as dimethylsulfide (DMS) in marine algae. Yet, despite its importance to climate and the global sulfur cycle, the reasons why many diverse algal taxa produce DMS remain unclear. DMS is produced when dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) is cleaved by the enzyme DMSP lyase into DMS and acrylic acid. Because acrylic acid can deter feeding by some herbivores, the production of DMSP has been postulated to be part of an antiherbivore chemical defense system, with DMS being a by-product of the production of the defensive compound acrylic acid. However, we found that DMS plays a …
Activated Defense Systems In Marine Macroalgae: Evidence For An Ecological Role For Dmsp Cleavage, Kathryn L. Van Alstyne Dr., Gordon V. Wolfe, Tess L. Freidenburg, Anna Neill, Corrine Hicken
Activated Defense Systems In Marine Macroalgae: Evidence For An Ecological Role For Dmsp Cleavage, Kathryn L. Van Alstyne Dr., Gordon V. Wolfe, Tess L. Freidenburg, Anna Neill, Corrine Hicken
Shannon Point Marine Center Faculty Publications
Activated defenses against herbivores and predators are defenses whereby a precursor compound is stored in an inactive or mildly active form. Upon damage to the prey, the precursor is enzymatically converted to a more potent toxin or feeding deterrent. In marine systems, activated defenses are only known to exist in a few species of tropical macroalgae. In this study, we examined an activated defense system in temperate marine macroalgae in which the osmolyte dimethylsulfo- niopropionate (DMSP) is converted to acrylic acid or acrylate, depending upon the pH, and dimethyl sulfide (DMS) by the enzyme DMSP lyase upon damage to the …