Combined effects of temperature and light intensity on growth, metabolome and ovatoxin content of a Mediterranean Ostreopsis cf. ovata strain

Ostreopsis cf. ovata is a benthic and ovatoxin-producing dinoflagellate proliferating yearly along the Mediterranean coasts where blooms have been related to human illness and unusual mortality of marine organisms. The spreading of O. cf. ovata in this temperate area has been linked to global changes and its consequences such as the increase of temperature or light intensities. In the present study, an experimental design using batch cultures of pre-acclimated cells of a strain of O. cf. ovata isolated from Villefranche-sur-Mer (NW Mediterranean Sea, France), was implemented to investigate the combined effect of temperature (23, 27 and 30 °C) and light intensity (200, 400 and 600 µmol m−2 s−1) on the growth, metabolome and OVTX content. Both light intensity and temperature affected the growth as significantly higher growth rates were obtained under 400 and 600 µmol m−2 s−1 while the maximum values were obtained at 27 °C (0.48 d−1). Metabolomic analyses highlighted a clear effect only for temperature that may correspond to two different strategies of acclimation to suboptimal temperatures. Significant features (such as carotenoid and lipids) modified by the temperature and/or light conditions were annotated. Only temperature induced a significant change of OVTX content with higher values measured at the lowest temperature of 23 °C (29 – 36 pg cell−1). In a context of global changes, these results obtained after acclimation suggest that the increase of temperature might favor the proliferation of less toxic cells. However, in the light of the intraspecific variability of O. cf. ovata, further studies will be necessary to test this hypothesis. This study also highlighted the lack of knowledge about the metabolome composition of such non-model organisms that impairs data interpretation. There is a need to study more deeply the metabolome of toxic dinoflagellates to better understand how they can acclimate to a changing environment.