The smell of seaweeds and their second skin: Do volatile infochemicals mediate biofouling processes?

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Volatiles are important info-chemicals (information-conveying chemicals) that play a crucial role in structuring life on our planet fulfilling diverse functions in natural and artificial systems. Marine macroalgae contribute significantly to the global budget of volatiles that are important for climate functioning. However, the ecological roles of volatiles, particularly in the structuring of marine fouling communities, are virtually unknown. This project will fill this essential knowledge gap by quantifying and qualifying the chemical signals released into the environment through the interaction of basibiont seaweeds with associated epibacteria. Novelty stems from the first identification and quantification of their volatile metabolomes that are the most promising candidates as marine info-chemicals. Timeliness is provided by the growing realization that intra- and interspecific info-chemistry regulates many biological interactions in aquatic environments and leads to healthily-structured and productive marine food webs. Bioassays will monitor the settlement behavior of epibacteria, fouling bacteria and planktonic invertebrate larvae in response to the seaweed volabolome; so that project outcomes can be explored for the manipulation of detrimental biofouling processes in future biotechnological applications.