Toxicity and Growth Assessments of Three Thermophilic Benthic Dinoflagellates (Ostreopsis cf. ovata, Prorocentrum lima and Coolia monotis) Developing in the Southern Mediterranean Basin

Abstract

Harmful benthic dinoflagellates, usually developing in tropical areas, are expanding to temperate ecosystems facing water warming. Reports on harmful benthic species are particularly scarce in the Southern Mediterranean Sea. For the first time, three thermophilic benthic dinoflagellates (<i>Ostreopsis</i> cf. <i>ovata</i>, <i>Prorocentrum lima</i> and <i>Coolia monotis</i>) were isolated from Bizerte Bay (Tunisia, Mediterranean) and monoclonal cultures established. The ribotyping confirmed the morphological identification of the three species. Maximum growth rates were 0.59 ± 0.08 d^-1 for <i>O.</i> cf. <i>ovata</i>, 0.35 ± 0.01 d^-1 for <i>C. monotis</i> and 0.33 ± 0.04 d^-1 for <i>P. lima.</i> Toxin analyses revealed the presence of ovatoxin-a and ovatoxin-b in <i>O.</i> cf. <i>ovata</i> cells. Okadaic acid and dinophysistoxin-1 were detected in <i>P. lima</i> cultures. For <i>C. monotis</i>, a chromatographic peak at 5.6 min with a mass <i>m</i>/<i>z</i> = 1061.768 was observed, but did not correspond to a mono-sulfated analogue of the yessotoxin. A comparison of the toxicity and growth characteristics of these dinoflagellates, distributed worldwide, is proposed.