New perspectives for addressing patterns of secondary metabolites in marine macroalgae

Abstract

Natural products can structure relationships between organisms, affect resource allocation, influence competition, mediate species distributions, and select for traits leading to the potential diversification of species (e.g. see reviews by McClintock and Baker 2001; Potin et al. 2002; Pohnert 2004; Ianora et al. 2006). Although there have been numerous efforts to determine patterns of metabolite distribution in marine ecosystems, particularly in macroalgae, these efforts have focused primarily on a macroscale: global patterns, patterns within specific habitats (e.g. the intertidal zone), and patterns correlated with changes in biotic and abiotic factors. Work in terrestrial ecosystems has led to the development of ecological models that describe trade-offs, costs, and benefits, and have been applied to marine algal systems (e.g. Cronin 2001; Jormalainen et al. 2003; Honkanen and Jormalainen 2005; Dworjanyn et al. 2006b; Ianora et al. 2006). However, the response of algal secondary metabolites to stimuli is a complex process, and these models do not consistently predict patterns of macroalgal metabolite production.