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International audience; Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) are molecules produced at the basis of marine food webs and essential for ecosystem functioning. This study reports detailed fatty acid (FA) composition including the two LC-PUFA 20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3, in suspended organic matter (SPOM) from the upper 300 m collected in the Kerguelen Island region in the Southern Ocean during the post-bloom period (February–March 2018; project MOBYDICK). FA profiles were largely dominated by PUFA (53–69% of Total Fatty Acid, TFA) regardless of stations and among PUFA, proportions of LC-PUFA were especially high, making up 27–44% of TFA both in the ML and upper mesopelagic. 20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3 co-occurred in the ML as a result of the post-bloom phytoplankton community showing a mixed composition dominated by small size phytoplankton (prymnesiophytes and prasinophytes) supplying 22:6n-3, and with diatoms in lower proportions supplying 20:5n-3. Elevated levels of LC-PUFA were observed both inside the iron-fertilized area on the Kerguelen Plateau and downstream, and outside in High Nutrient Low Chlorophyll waters located upstream of the Plateau, and appeared unrelated to site. In the upper mesopelagic, both LC-PUFA were maintained at high relative proportions suggesting an efficient and possibly fast vertical transfer from the surface. Transfer with depth seems to proceed via distinct pathways according to LC-PUFA. 20:5n-3 may be exported along with diatoms, presumably in the form of large intact cells, aggregates as well as resting spores. For 22:6n-3, transfer may involve a channeling through the heterotrophic food web resulting in its association with fecal material at depth. Channeling of 22:6n-3 could involve heterotrophic protists such as dinoflagellates and ciliates grazing on small phytoplankton, as well as larger zooplankton such as copepods and salps, possibly feeding on microzooplankton and producing fecal pellets rich in 22:6n-3. According to LC-PUFA content, SPOM present throughout the upper water column (0–300 m) appeared of high nutritional quality both on- and off-plateau, and represented a valuable source of food for secondary consumers and suspension feeders.

International audience; N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs), and especially eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are essential compounds for human health. They have been proven to act positively on a panel of diseases and have interesting anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory or anti-cancer properties. For these reasons, they are receiving more and more attention in recent years, especially future food or feed development. EPA and DHA come mainly from marine sources like fish or seaweed. Unfortunately, due to global warming, these compounds are becoming scarce for humans because of overfishing and stock reduction. Although increasing in recent years, aquaculture appears insufficient to meet the increasing requirements of these healthy molecules for humans. One alternative resides in the cultivation of microalgae, the initial producers of EPA and DHA. They are also rich in biochemicals with interesting properties. After defining macro and microalgae, this review synthesizes the current knowledge on n-3 PUFAs regarding health benefits and the challenges surrounding their supply within the environmental context. Microalgae n-3 PUFA production is examined and its synthesis pathways are discussed. Finally, the use of EPA and DHA in food and feed is investigated. This work aims to define better the issues surrounding n-3 PUFA production and supply and the potential of microalgae as a sustainable source of compounds to enhance the food and feed of the future.

The present study sought to characterize the synthesis pathways producing the essential polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) 20:5n-3 (EPA). For this, the incorporation of 13C was experimentally monitored into 10 fatty acids (FA) during the growth of the diatom Chaetoceros muelleri for 24 h. Chaetoceros muelleri preferentially and quickly incorporated 13C into C18 PUFAs such as 18:2n-6 and 18:3n-6 as well as 16:0 and 16:1n-7, which were thus highly 13C-enriched. During the experiment, 20:5n-3 and 16:3n-4 were among the least-enriched fatty acids. The calculation of the enrichment percentage ratio of a fatty acid B over its suspected precursor A allowed us to suggest that the diatom produced 20:5n-3 (EPA) by a combination between the n-3 (via 18:4n-3) and n-6 (via 18:3n-6 and 20:4n-6) synthesis pathways as well as the alternative &omega, 3 desaturase pathway (via 20:4n-6). In addition, as FA from polar lipids were generally more enriched in 13C than FA from neutral lipids, particularly for 18:1n-9, 18:2n-6 and 18:3n-6, the existence of acyl-editing mechanisms and connectivity between polar and neutral lipid fatty acid pools were also hypothesized. Because 16:3n-4 and 20:5n-3 presented the same concentration and enrichment dynamics, a structural and metabolic link was proposed between these two PUFAs in C. muelleri.

International audience; Different cold‐water coral (CWC) species harbour distinct microbial communities and the community composition is thought to be linked to the ecological strategies of the host. Here we test whether diet shapes the composition of bacterial communities associated with CWC. We compared the microbiomes of two common CWC species in aquaria, Lophelia pertusa and Madrepora oculata, when they were either starved, or fed respectively with a carnivorous diet, two different herbivorous diets, or a mix of the 3. We targeted both the standing stock (16S rDNA) and the active fraction (16S rRNA) of the bacterial communities and showed that in both species, the corals' microbiome was specific to the given diet. A part of the microbiome remained, however, species‐specific, which indicates that the microbiome's plasticity is framed by the identity of the host. In addition, the storage lipid content of the coral tissue showed that different diets had different effects on the corals' metabolisms. The combined results suggest that L. pertusa may be preying preferentially on zooplankton while M. oculata may in addition use phytoplankton and detritus. The results cast a new light on coral microbiomes as they indicate that a portion of the CWC's bacterial community could represent a food influenced microbiome.

International audience; Carbon isotopic fractionation was studied during the development of the diatom Chaetoceros muelleri grown in batch culture with 13C-depleted CO2 addition. Cellular and growth parameters and isotopic composition of dissolved inorganic carbon and particulate organic carbon were monitored every two days, while the content and isotopic composition of individual fatty acid in polar lipid and neutral lipid were measured on the 5th day (end of exponential phase), 10th and 14th days (stationary phase). Continuous addition of petrochemical CO2 to the algae led to a rapid and strong modification of dissolved inorganic carbon isotopic composition with cascading effects on particulate organic carbon and fatty acid isotopic compositions. Carbon isotope fractionation in Chaetoceros muelleri ranged from 17‰ to 25‰ and changed according to culture ages. Isotopic fractionation into fatty acids, overall, was similar between polar and neutral lipids, and was systematically higher than in particulate organic carbon. At the end of the exponential growth phase, the isotopic composition of individual fatty acids varied from −51.3‰ to −58.4‰. At this culture age, large differences in the isotopic compositions between fatty acids were observed. Polyunsaturated fatty acids such as 16:3n-4, 18:4n-3, and 20:5n-3 were more strongly 13C-depleted than other fatty acids such as 14:0, 16:0, 16:1n-7 or 18:1n-9. These results showed how isotopic effects occur during the desaturation and elongation phases. Such isotopic effects were also supported by the lower δ13C of averaged δ13C of saturated fatty acids and monounsaturated fatty acids as compared to those of polyunsaturated fatty acids. However, during the stationary phase, fatty acid isotopic compositions were less variable and closer to particulate organic carbon, while saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids were more depleted than polyunsaturated fatty acids. Our study underlined the importance of consideration of phytoplankton physiological status when conducting ecological and biogeochemical studies as they appeared to strongly control phytoplankton carbon isotopic composition.

The synthetic pathways responsible for the production of the polyunsaturated fatty acids 22:6n-3 and 20:5n-3 were studied in the Dinophyte Alexandrium minutum. The purpose of this work was to follow the progressive incorporation of an isotopic label (13CO2) into 11 fatty acids to better understand the fatty acid synthesis pathways in A. minutum. The Dinophyte growth was monitored for 54 hours using high-frequency sampling. A. minutum presented a growth in two phases. A lag phase was observed during the first 30 hours of development and had been associated with the probable temporary encystment of Dinophyte cells. An exponential growth phase was then observed after t30. A. minutum rapidly incorporated 13C into 22:6n-3, which ended up being the most 13C-enriched polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) in this experiment, with a higher 13C atomic enrichment than 18:4n-3, 18:5n-3, 20:5n-3, and 22:5n-3. Overall, the 13C atomic enrichment (AE) was inversely proportional to number of carbons in n-3 PUFA. C18 PUFAs, 18:4n-3, and 18:5n-3, were indeed among the least 13C-enriched FAs during this experiment. They were assumed to be produced by the n-3 PUFA pathway. However, they could not be further elongated or desaturated to produce n-3 C20-C22 PUFA, because the AEs of the n-3 C18 PUFAs were lower than those of the n-3 C20-C22 PUFAs. Thus, the especially high atomic enrichment of 22:6n-3 (55.8% and 54.9% in neutral lipids (NLs) and polar lipids (PLs), respectively) led us to hypothesize that this major PUFA was synthesized by an O2-independent Polyketide Synthase (PKS) pathway. Another parallel PKS, independent of the one leading to 22:6n-3, was also supposed to produce 20:5n-3. The inverse order of the 13C atomic enrichment for n-3 PUFAs was also suspected to be related to the possible &beta, oxidation of long-chain n-3 PUFAs occurring during A. minutum encystment.