Co-evolution of the Shrimp Hippolyte
inermis and the Diatoms Cocconeis spp.
in Posidonia oceanica: Sexual Adaptations
Explained by Ecological Fitting
7
Valerio Zupo
Contents
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
2 Food Choice and Evolutionary Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 137
3 The Diversity of Marine Diatoms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
4 Diatoms as Food for Invertebrates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
5 The Life Cycle of Hippolyte inermis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Abstract
Microalgae influence the life of grazers in such stable ecosystems as Posidonia
oceanica meadows. Competition and co-existence require adaptations for both
organisms: algae produce metabolites able to reduce the grazing activity, and
invertebrate react to the chemical weapons of algae, for feeding on their thalli.
Several diatoms produce wound-activated compounds and some of them have
been demonstrated to trigger apoptosis and teratogenic effects in planktonic
copepods. The case of Hippolyte inermis and its diatom food is different and
peculiar because the shrimp transformed the effects of apoptogenic compounds
produced by Cocconeis into a spring signal to obtain a higher abundance of
females, so stabilizing its natural populations. As in crustacean decapods, the
sex is determined by the presence/absence of a single gland (the Androgenic
Gland; A.G.), in H. inermis the apoptogenic effect of secondary metabolites is
limited to the destruction of the A.G. in spring, when various species of Cocconeis
dominate the epiphytic layer of Posidonia leaves. This relationship, evidently
co-evolved through a competitive relationship, allows the shrimp to produce a
V. Zupo (*)
Marine Biotechnology Department, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
e-mail: valerio.zupo@szn.it; vzupo@szn.it
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
J.-M. Mérillon, K. G. Ramawat (eds.), Co-Evolution of Secondary Metabolites,
Reference Series in Phytochemistry, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-96397-6_27
135
inermis and the Diatoms Cocconeis spp.
in Posidonia oceanica: Sexual Adaptations
Explained by Ecological Fitting
7
Valerio Zupo
Contents
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
2 Food Choice and Evolutionary Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 137
3 The Diversity of Marine Diatoms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
4 Diatoms as Food for Invertebrates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
5 The Life Cycle of Hippolyte inermis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Abstract
Microalgae influence the life of grazers in such stable ecosystems as Posidonia
oceanica meadows. Competition and co-existence require adaptations for both
organisms: algae produce metabolites able to reduce the grazing activity, and
invertebrate react to the chemical weapons of algae, for feeding on their thalli.
Several diatoms produce wound-activated compounds and some of them have
been demonstrated to trigger apoptosis and teratogenic effects in planktonic
copepods. The case of Hippolyte inermis and its diatom food is different and
peculiar because the shrimp transformed the effects of apoptogenic compounds
produced by Cocconeis into a spring signal to obtain a higher abundance of
females, so stabilizing its natural populations. As in crustacean decapods, the
sex is determined by the presence/absence of a single gland (the Androgenic
Gland; A.G.), in H. inermis the apoptogenic effect of secondary metabolites is
limited to the destruction of the A.G. in spring, when various species of Cocconeis
dominate the epiphytic layer of Posidonia leaves. This relationship, evidently
co-evolved through a competitive relationship, allows the shrimp to produce a
V. Zupo (*)
Marine Biotechnology Department, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
e-mail: valerio.zupo@szn.it; vzupo@szn.it
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
J.-M. Mérillon, K. G. Ramawat (eds.), Co-Evolution of Secondary Metabolites,
Reference Series in Phytochemistry, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-96397-6_27
135