Analysis of expressed sequence tags from the ichtyotoxic dictyochophyte Pseudochattonella farcimen


Contact
Uwe.John [ at ] awi.de

Abstract

Pseudochattonella farcimen (Eikrem, Edvardsen, et Throndsen) is an ichthyotoxic alga within the Dictyochophyceae (Heterokonta), which has been shown to form blooms in Scandinavian waters every year since 1998. To improve our understanding of the biology of this alga and to facilitate future genomic studies, we report the sequencing and analysis of >10,000 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) corresponding to 8149 gene models from this species. A direct comparison with EST libraries from other heterokonts revealed several functional categories to be significantly overrepresented among the P. facimen ESTs, such as genes involved in cell communication, transporters, or genes targeted to cell organelles. Interestingly, P. farcimen ESTs also code for a high proportion (1.4%) of proteins related to fatty acid metabolism, including eight fatty acid desaturases and two phospholipase A2 genes. Three of the desaturases belong to a family of delta-4 desaturases, known so far only from haptophytes, where they catalyze the conversion of n3-docosapentaenoic (n3-DPA) acid to docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). These findings may partially explain the unusual fatty acid profiles observed in P. farcimen and are discussed both from an evolutionary point of view and in relation the ichthyotoxic effects of this alga



Item Type
Conference (Talk)
Authors
Divisions
Primary Division
Programs
Primary Topic
Publication Status
Published
Event Details
14th International Conference on Harmful Algae, 01 Mar 2010 - 05 Mar 2010, Hersonissos-Crete, Greece.
Eprint ID
33691
Cite as
Riisberg, I. , Dittami, S. M. , John, U. , Orr, R. J. , Shalchian-Tabrizi, K. , Jakobsen, K. S. and Edvardsen, B. (2010): Analysis of expressed sequence tags from the ichtyotoxic dictyochophyte Pseudochattonella farcimen , 14th International Conference on Harmful Algae, Hersonissos-Crete, Greece, 1 March 2010 - 5 March 2010 .


Share

Research Platforms
N/A

Campaigns
N/A


Actions
Edit Item Edit Item