AUTHOR=Celis-Plá Paula S. M. , Hall-Spencer Jason M. , Horta Paulo Antunes , Milazzo Marco , Korbee Nathalie , Cornwall Christopher E. , Figueroa Félix L. 

TITLE=Macroalgal responses to ocean acidification depend on nutrient and light levels

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Marine Science

VOLUME=2

YEAR=2015

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science/articles/10.3389/fmars.2015.00026

DOI=10.3389/fmars.2015.00026

ISSN=2296-7745

ABSTRACT=<p>Ocean acidification may benefit algae that are able to capitalize on increased carbon availability for photosynthesis, but it is expected to have adverse effects on calcified algae through dissolution. Shifts in dominance between primary producers will have knock-on effects on marine ecosystems and will likely vary regionally, depending on factors such as irradiance (light vs. shade) and nutrient levels (oligotrophic vs. eutrophic). Thus experiments are needed to evaluate interactive effects of combined stressors in the field. In this study, we investigated the physiological responses of macroalgae near a CO<sub>2</sub> seep in oligotrophic waters off Vulcano (Italy). The algae were incubated <italic>in situ</italic> at 0.2 m depth using a combination of three mean CO<sub>2</sub> levels (500, 700–800 and 1200 μatm CO<sub>2</sub>), two light levels (100 and 70% of surface irradiance) and two nutrient levels of N, P, and K (enriched vs. non-enriched treatments) in the non-calcified macroalga <italic>Cystoseira compressa</italic> (Phaeophyceae, Fucales) and calcified <italic>Padina pavonica</italic> (Phaeophyceae, Dictyotales). A suite of biochemical assays and <italic>in vivo</italic> chlorophyll <italic>a</italic> fluorescence parameters showed that elevated CO<sub>2</sub> levels benefitted both of these algae, although their responses varied depending on light and nutrient availability. In <italic>C. compressa</italic>, elevated CO<sub>2</sub> treatments resulted in higher carbon content and antioxidant activity in shaded conditions both with and without nutrient enrichment—they had more Chl<italic>a</italic>, phenols and fucoxanthin with nutrient enrichment and higher quantum yield (<italic>F<sub>v</sub>/F<sub>m</sub></italic>) and photosynthetic efficiency (α<sub>ETR</sub>) without nutrient enrichment. In <italic>P. pavonica</italic>, elevated CO<sub>2</sub> treatments had higher carbon content, <italic>F<sub>v</sub>/F<sub>m</sub></italic>, α<sub>ETR</sub>, and Chl<italic>a</italic> regardless of nutrient levels—they had higher concentrations of phenolic compounds in nutrient enriched, fully-lit conditions and more antioxidants in shaded, nutrient enriched conditions. Nitrogen content increased significantly in fertilized treatments, confirming that these algae were nutrient limited in this oligotrophic part of the Mediterranean. Our findings strengthen evidence that brown algae can be expected to proliferate as the oceans acidify where physicochemical conditions, such as nutrient levels and light, permit.</p>