Tipping points of nitrogen use efficiency in freshwater phytoplankton along trophic state gradient.

Eutrophication and harmful algal blooms have severe effects on water quality and biodiversity in lakes and reservoirs. Ecological regime shifts of phytoplankton blooms are generally thought to be driven by the rapidly rising nutrient use efficiency of bloom-forming species over short periods, and often exhibit nonlinear dynamics. Regime shifts of trophic state, eutrophication, stratification, and clear or turbid waters are well-studied topics in aquatic ecology. However, information on the prevalence of regime shifts in relationships between trophic states and phytoplankton resource transfer efficiencies in ecosystems is still lacking. Here, we provided a first insight into regime shifts in nitrogen use efficiency of phytoplankton along the trophic state gradient. We explored the regime shifts of phytoplankton resource use efficiency and detected the tipping points by combining four temporal or spatial datasets from tropical to temperate zones in Asia and Europe. We first observed significant abrupt transitions (abruptness > 1) in phytoplankton nitrogen use efficiency along the trophic state gradient. The tipping point values were lower in subtropical/tropical waterbodies (mesotrophic states; TSIc: around 50) than those in temperate zones (eutrophic states; TSIc: 60-70). The regime shifts significantly reduced the primary production transfer efficiency via zooplankton (from 0.15 ± 0.03 to 0.03 ± 0.01; mean ± standard error) in the aquatic food web. Nitrogen-fixing filamentous cyanobacteria can drive eutrophication under mesotrophic state. Our findings imply that the time-window of opportunity for harmful algae prevention and control in lakes and reservoirs is earlier in subtropical/tropical regions.

Relationships of temperature and biodiversity with stability of natural aquatic food webs.

Temperature and biodiversity changes occur in concert, but their joint effects on ecological stability of natural food webs are unknown. Here, we assess these relationships in 19 planktonic food webs. We estimate stability as structural stability (using the volume contraction rate) and temporal stability (using the temporal variation of species abundances). Warmer temperatures were associated with lower structural and temporal stability, while biodiversity had no consistent effects on either stability property. While species richness was associated with lower structural stability and higher temporal stability, Simpson diversity was associated with higher temporal stability. The responses of structural stability were linked to disproportionate contributions from two trophic groups (predators and consumers), while the responses of temporal stability were linked both to synchrony of all species within the food web and distinctive contributions from three trophic groups (predators, consumers, and producers). Our results suggest that, in natural ecosystems, warmer temperatures can erode ecosystem stability, while biodiversity changes may not have consistent effects.

Phosphorus compounds in the dissolved and particulate phases in urban rivers and a downstream eutrophic lake as analyzed using 31P NMR.

Phosphorus (P) discharges from human activities result in eutrophication of lakes. We investigated whether the forms of phosphorus (P) in rivers with high effluent loads flowing through urban areas of Sapporo, Japan, were transformed when transported downstream into a eutrophic lake, namely Lake Barato. We hypothesized that the inorganic P supplied from the rivers might be transformed to organic forms in the lake. The results showed that soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) and particulate inorganic phosphorus (PIP) dominated in the river discharge to the lake. Suspended solids in the rivers were rich in iron (Fe) so PIP was associated with Fe. A comparison of the concentrations at the river mouth and 4.5 km downstream showed that the concentrations of SRP and PIP were lower at 4.5 km downstream than at the river mouth, whereas the concentrations of organic P (i.e., dissolved organic phosphorus and particulate organic phosphorus) were similar. The results from solution 31P nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy of lake water showed that pyrophosphate was only present in the particulate fraction, while orthophosphate diesters (DNA-P) were only present in the dissolved fraction. Riverine samples contained orthophosphate (ortho-P) only, while lake samples contained ortho-P, orthophosphate monoesters, and DNA-P. The results suggest that the P forms, particularly those of dissolved P, shifted from inorganic to organic forms as the water was discharged from the river to the lake.

Seasonal dynamics of the activities of dissolved 137Cs and the 137Cs of fish in a shallow, hypereutrophic lake: Links to bottom-water oxygen concentrations.

Remobilization of radiocesium from anoxic sediments can be an important mechanism responsible for long-term contaminations of lakes. However, it is unclear whether such remobilization occurs in shallow lakes, where concentrations of dissolved oxygen in the hypolimnion (bottom DO) change temporally in response to meteorological conditions, and whether remobilized radiocesium influences the activity in fish. We examined the seasonal dynamics of the activities of dissolved 137Cs and 137Cs in fish (pond smelt and crucian carp) from Lake Kasumigaura, a shallow, hypereutrophic lake, five years after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. The activities of both dissolved 137Cs and 137Cs in fish declined during that time, but the declines showed a clear seasonal pattern that included a summer peak of 137Cs activity. The activity of dissolved 137Cs increased when the bottom DO concentration decreased, and a nonlinear causality test revealed significant causal forcing of dissolved 137Cs activity by bottom DO. The fact that NH4-N concentrations in bottom waters were higher in the summer suggested that remobilization of 137Cs from sediments could result from highly selective ion-exchange with NH4-N. Despite the shallow depth of Lake Kasumigaura, winds had little influence bottom DO concentrations or dissolved 137Cs activities. The fact that seasonal means of 137Cs activities in pond smelt and crucian carp were positively correlated with the seasonal means of dissolved 137Cs activities suggested that remobilized 137Cs may have influenced the seasonal dynamics of radiocesium in fish through food-chain transfer, but higher feeding rates in warm water could may have also contributed to the seasonal dynamics of 137Cs activity in fish. Our findings suggest that in shallow lakes, intermittent but repeated hypoxic events may enhance remobilization of radiocesium from sediments, and remobilized radiocesium may contributed to long-term retention of radiocesium in aquatic organisms.

Incorporation characteristics of exogenous 15N-labeled thymidine, deoxyadenosine, deoxyguanosine and deoxycytidine into bacterial DNA.

Bacterial production has been often estimated from DNA synthesis rates by using tritium-labeled thymidine. Some bacteria species cannot incorporate extracellular thymidine into their DNA, suggesting their biomass production might be overlooked when using the conventional method. In the present study, to evaluate appropriateness of deoxyribonucleosides for evaluating bacterial production of natural bacterial communities from the viewpoint of DNA synthesis, incorporation rates of four deoxyribonucleosides (thymidine, deoxyadenosine, deoxyguanosine and deoxycytidine) labeled by nitrogen stable isotope (15N) into bacterial DNA were examined in both ocean (Sagami Bay) and freshwater (Lake Kasumigaura) ecosystems in July 2015 and January 2016. In most stations in Sagami Bay and Lake Kasumigaura, we found that incorporation rates of deoxyguanosine were the highest among those of the four deoxyribonucleosides, and the incorporation rate of deoxyguanosine was approximately 2.5 times higher than that of thymidine. Whereas, incorporation rates of deoxyadenosine and deoxycytidine were 0.9 and 0.2 times higher than that of thymidine. These results clearly suggest that the numbers of bacterial species which can incorporate exogenous deoxyguanosine into their DNA are relatively greater as compared to the other deoxyribonucleosides, and measurement of bacterial production using deoxyguanosine more likely reflects larger numbers of bacterial species productions.

Detection of 2-aminoethylphosphonic acid in suspended particles in an ultraoligotrophic lake: a two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (2D-NMR) study.

Particulate organic phosphorus (P) compounds were examined in ultraoligotrophic Lake Saiko, Japan. A cartridge filter was used to collect sufficient amount of suspended particles for analysis by a two-dimensional NMR (1H-31P heteronuclear multiple bond correlation). 2-Aminoethylphosphonic acid (2-AEP), a phosphonate, was detected in suspended particles in Lake Saiko. The identity of the phosphonate was confirmed by comparison with a commercially available compound. Because 2-AEP is bioavailable, microorganisms can store and use this compound under extremely P-limited conditions. This is the first study to detect 2-AEP in an ultra-oligotrophic environment.

Dynamics of particulate phosphorus in a shallow eutrophic lake.

We tested the hypothesis that in shallow, eutrophic Lake Kasumigaura, the concentration of particulate phosphorus (PP) is controlled by biogenic P (P in living or dead phytoplankton and bacterial cells), rather than by resuspension of inorganic P in sediment. Increases in wind velocity and turbidity were associated with bottom shear stress exceeding the critical value for the lake (τc=0.15Nm(-2)); this increased turbidity was due to sediment resuspension. However, concentrations of PP; HCl-extractable, reactive P in PP (P-rP); and HCl-extractable, non-reactive P in PP (P-nrP) were not correlated with wind velocity (PP vs. wind velocity: r=0.40, p>0.05). Rather, the P-nrP concentration accounted for approximately 79% of PP, and the concentrations of PP, P-rP, and P-nrP were correlated with the particulate organic carbon (POC) concentration (POC vs. PP: r=0.90, p<0.01; POC vs. P-rP: r=0.82, p<0.01; POC vs. P-nrP: r=0.86, p<0.01). In our (31)P nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy results, mononucleotides accounted for the largest proportion among the detected P compound classes. In addition, concentrations of mononucleotides, orthophosphate, and pyrophosphate were significantly higher in samples with high POC concentrations, whereas the DNA-P concentration was not. These results suggest that biogenic P affects PP concentrations more strongly than does sediment resuspension, and the production of biogenic P creates a pool of mononucleotides, a class of easily degradable P, even in shallow, eutrophic Lake Kasumigaura.

Bacterial contribution to dissolved organic matter in eutrophic Lake Kasumigaura, Japan.

Incubation experiments using filtered waters from Lake Kasumigaura were conducted to examine bacterial contribution to a dissolved organic carbon (DOC) pool. Bacterial abundance, bacterial production, concentrations of DOC, total dissolved amino acids (TDAA), and total dissolved neutral sugars (TDNS) were monitored during the experiments. Bacterial production during the first few days was very high (20 to 35 µg C liter(-1) day(-1)), accounting for 40 to 70% of primary production. The total bacterial production accounted for 34 to 55% of the DOC loss during the experiment, indicating high bacterial activities in Lake Kasumigaura. The DOC degradation was only 12 to 15%, whereas the degradation of TDAA and TDNS ranged from 30 to 50%, suggesting the preferential usage of TDAA and TDNS. The contribution of bacterially derived carbon to a DOC pool in Lake Kasumigaura was estimated using d-amino acids as bacterial biomarkers and accounted for 30 to 50% of the lake DOC. These values were much higher than those estimated for the open ocean (20 to 30%). The ratio of bacterially derived carbon to bulk carbon increased slightly with time, suggesting that the bacterially derived carbon is more resistant to microbial degradation than bulk carbon. This is the first study to estimate the bacterial contribution to a DOC pool in freshwater environments. These results indicate that bacteria play even more important roles in carbon cycles in freshwater environments than in open oceans and also suggests that recent increases in recalcitrant DOC in various lakes could be attributed to bacterially derived carbon. The potential differences in bacterial contributions to dissolved organic matter (DOM) between freshwater and marine environments are discussed.

Biogenic phosphorus compounds in sediment and suspended particles in a shallow eutrophic lake: a ³¹P-nuclear magnetic resonance (³¹P NMR) study.

Differences in biogenic phosphorus (P) compounds between sediment and suspended particles in aquatic environments are important for understanding the mechanisms of internal P loading, but these differences are still unknown. We used solution-state (31)P-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((31)P NMR) with NaOH-ethylenediaminetetraacetic extraction to detect the multiple P compounds in suspended particles and sediment in the eutrophic Lake Kasumigaura, including orthophosphate monoesters, orthophosphate diesters, pyrophosphate, and polyphosphate. We tested the hypothesis that there is a significant difference between these groups in suspended particles and sediment. Biogenic P other than orthophosphate was found in significantly higher proportions in suspended particles (74.3% of total P) than in sediment (25.6%). Orthophosphate monoesters were comparatively more abundant in suspended particles, as indicated by the ratio of orthophosphate diesters to monoesters (average, 0.31 for suspended particles; 1.05 for sediment). The compounds identified as orthophosphate monoesters by (31)P NMR spectroscopy originated mainly from phospholipids (α-glycerophosphate and ß-glycerophosphate) and ribonucleic acid (RNA-P), whereas the orthophosphate diesters included mostly DNA (DNA-P). These results suggest that the dynamics of orthophosphate diesters, the production of DNA-P, or the degradation of phospholipids, play an important role in P cycling in Lake Kasumigaura.