Marine Benthic Dinoflagellates Their Relevance For Science And Society

Dinoflagellates are important primary producers, symbionts and, at the same time, heterotrophic consumers and parasites. The species composi- tion in benthic habitats is quite distinct from planktonic habitats. Our un- derstanding of benthic dinoflagellate biodiversity, biogeography, toxicology and ecology has improved but is still rudimentary. Benthic harmful algal blooms have attracted increasing interest because of the impact of ciguatera poisoning, the most important food-borne disease of non-bacterial origin worldwide, which is caused by benthic dinoflagellate species. Ciguatera poisoning appears to have increased worldwide in recent years. This publication is an updated summary of the taxonomy of currently described taxa and includes morphological and molecular genetic information for species identification. It contains the most comprehensive review of benthic dinoflagellate toxins published so far. The book also describes methods of study, discusses phylogenetics and evolution, and highlights their scientific relevance as well as the health and economic impacts of benthic dinoflagellates for society. This book is a fundamental contribution to improving the monitoring of benthic dinoflagellates worldwide: 242 species in 63 genera are presented, illustrated with more than 240 color images, about 250 electron micrographs and more than 330 drawings.

"Dinoflagellates are fascinating protists, mostly unicellular, distributed in environments ranging from the polar to tropical seas, hypersaline, coastal, estuarine and oceanic waters. There are about 2,377 dinoflagellate species recognized. They exhibit a great diversity of shape, size, biochemical composition and physiological characteristics. Generally free floating, dinoflagellates are photosynthetic, a few species such as the Symbodinium are symbiotic, living in corals, while a few are parasitic. This volume presents a discussion on dinoflagellate phylogeny based on recent developments in molecular biology. It provides insights into the similarity of pigment composition with other microalgae. A comprehensive coverage of their carbon assimilation rates is presented, which appear to be low compared to other microalgae. Besides photosynthetic assimilation, an interesting aspect of acquiring carbon is through mixotrophy which appears to be wide spread amongst dinoflagellates and a thorough discussion is presented. Key features of this book include recent methods of culturing dinoflagellates, which can serve as analogues of their blooms in understanding their physiology, biochemistry and production of phycotoxins. This book, based on massive data collected over decades of research, provides an informative overview on the spatial and temporal distribution and dispersal of dinoflagellates by ocean currents, ballast water introductions and climate changes. About 70 species of dinoflagellates are implicated in the production of ephemeral harmful algal blooms (HABs), which are on the increase globally. Based on several case studies, a comprehensive coverage of the phycotoxins produced by HAB species (PSP, DSP, ASP, Ciguatera, NSP) is presented. The adverse effects of phycotoxins on human health, and the loss of revenues ($50 million in the USA) due to fish kills are evaluated. Latest advances in the methodology of genomics are presented with a view to highlight their importance and to understand their linkage with phycotoxin production. A discussion of remediation measures to manage HABs is presented, which would be highly useful in aquaculture operations. This book provides a large number of illustrations, microphotographs and color photographs. It is ideal for any audience requiring an in-depth exposure to current issues, ideas and methods used in dinoflagellate studies. The topics discussed serve as a useful reference to researchers, scientists, environmental managers, undergraduate and graduate students"--

Marine dinoflagellates, one of the most important components in phytoplankton are receiving much attention owing to their toxicity. They are responsible for causing toxic blooms and associated poisonings such as Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), Neurotoxic shellfish poisoning (NSP), Diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP), Azaspiracid shellfish poisoning (ASP) and Ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) in humans all over the world. However, recent research has shown that such toxins could be of great use therapeutically. Aspects such as the identification of dinoflagellate species; harmful dinoflagelllate blooms and associated poisonings as well as their bioluminescence and biotechnological applications have been dealt with in detail. A comprehensive book on marine dinoflagellates is hitherto wanted and needed, and it is hoped that the present publication would cater to the needs of students of life science disciplines in general and marine biology and fisheries science disciplines in particular.

Covers topical issues including pollution and exploitation, and considers how we can ensure a sustainable future for the world's oceans.

This is the annual journal of the Marine Biological Association of Hong Kong. It contains papers on marine subjects of interest to all Asian biologists.