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While picocyanobacteria (PC) are important actors in carbon and nutrient cycles in aquatic systems, factors controlling their interannual dynamics and diversity are poorly known due to the general lack of long-term monitoring surveys. This study intended to fill this gap by applying a DNA-based paleolimnological approach to sediment records from a deep subalpine lake that has experienced dramatic changes in environmental conditions during the last century (eutrophication, reoligotrophication and large-scale climate changes). We particularly investigated the long-term (100 yr) diversity and dynamics of Synechococcus, PC that have presumably been affected by both the lake trophic status changes and global warming. The lake's morphological and environmental conditions provided ideal conditions for DNA preservation in the sediment archives. Generalised additive models applied to quantitative PCR (qPCR) results highlighted that an increase in summer temperature could have a significant positive impact on the relative abundance of Synechococcus (fraction of Synechococcus in total cyanobacteria). The diversity of Synechococcus in Lake Bourget was studied by phylogenetic analyses of the 16S rRNA gene and internal transcribed spacer (ITS). Up to 23 different OTUs (based on 16S rRNA), which fell into various cosmopolitan or endemic clusters, were identified in samples from the past 100 yr. Moreover, study of the ITS revealed a higher diversity within the major 16S rRNA-defined OTUs. Changes in PC diversity were related to the lake's trophic status. Overall, qPCR and sequencing results showed that environmental changes (here, in temperature and phosphorus concentration) affected Synechococcus community dynamics and structure, translating into changes in genotype composition. These results also helped to re-evaluate the geographical distribution of some Synechococcus clusters. Providing such novel insights into the long-term history of an important group of primary producers, this study illustrates the promising approach that consists in coupling molecular tools and paleolimnology to reconstruct a lake's biodiversity history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hypothesis that diatom carbon (C) produced during the spring peak supported spring zooplankton production and, ultimately, the growth of Coregonus lavaretus early larval stages from March to May 2006 in Lake Annecy, France, was tested using gut content analyses and fatty acid biomarkers. Gut content results showed that C. lavaretus larvae from stages 1 to 4 preferentially fed on copepods with Daphnia sp. only a minor proportion of larval diet. The levels of diatom-marker fatty acids (C16:1n-7 and C20:5n-3) were high in Daphnia sp., but lower in both copepods and C. lavaretus larvae from stages 0 to 4. These results indicated that the spring diatom biomass was actually grazed by Daphnia sp., but, contrary to what was expected, the spring bloom was not the only C source supporting copepods secondary production and, consequently, the growth of C. lavaretus early larval stages. In contrast, levels of terrestrial fatty acid marker (C24:0) were low in Daphnia sp. but high in copepods and C. lavaretus larvae, indicating a significant contribution of terrestrial carbon to copepods and, ultimately, to the growth of C. lavaretus early larval stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: δ13C and δ15N values in crustacean taxa were measured once a month in two alpine lakes over a 2-year period in order to address seasonal changes in the isotope composition of the zooplankton. Daphnia sp. was used as the ‘pelagic baseline’ (i.e. primary sources fueling the pelagic food web), as it exhibited the lowest δ13C and δ15N values among the crustacean taxa. Seasonal changes resulting from modifications in the trophic position of other crustacean taxa were assessed by comparing their seasonal δ13C and δ15N values to those of Daphnia sp. Baseline modifications were addressed by relating them to physical, chemical and biological changes in the epilimnion. In Lake Geneva, all the crustacean taxa rely on the same carbon source and occupy relative trophic positions that display no major changes over time. In contrast, in Lake Annecy, the crustacean food web was found to be much more complex. The crustacean taxa apparently obtained their carbon from differing primary sources and their relative trophic positions changed during the year. This study raises the question of the ambiguity of the pelagic baseline concept when applied to zooplankton trophic studies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The scales of whitefish Coregonus lavaretus were used in place of dorsal muscle, which necessitates killing the fish, to study food webs from the δ13C and δ15N isotopic ratios in the organic fraction. As scales are composed of both organic and calcified fractions, a protocol for scale decalcification was first devised. The δ13C and δ15N values of the decalcified scales were then shown to be closely correlated to those of the dorsal muscle, demonstrating that scales could be used in place of muscle to study food webs. Changes in the δ13C of whitefish were determined from a scale collection that extended over the period during which the trophic state of Lake Geneva was recovering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite PCBs being banned since the 1980's, some European peri-alpine lakes, and consequently their fish populations, are still contaminated by these xenobiotics. We investigated the relative contribution of physiological and trophic factors that could be implicated in fish PCB bioaccumulation in Lake Bourget (France), one of the most contaminated in Europe, by collecting Arctic char (n = 55) and European whitefish (n = 89) from 2013 to 2016. Concentrations of 7 indicator PCBs were 9-168 ng.g w.w -1 in whitefish and 90-701 ng.g w.w -1 in Arctic char. The fish trophic positions calculated from δ 15 N values were positively correlated with PCB concentrations (r 2  = 0.45; p < 0.001). A biomagnification model relying on TP and lipid content of fish was then designed, and it confirmed this result. A Bayesian mixing model based on δ 13 C and δ 15 N values was used to estimate the relative contribution of preys in the fish diet, which explained a significant proportion of the biomagnification model residuals (i.e., 17%). Zooplankton consumption was negatively correlated with PCB concentrations, whereas consumption of chironomids enhanced the PCB burden in fish. Correction of the biomagnification model for individual diets of fish increased the correlation between the predicted and measured fish PCB contents (R 2  = 0.71; p < 0.001), highlighting the importance of fish feeding habits in the bioaccumulation process., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)