Comparison in diversity of eukaryotic algae in surface sediments from different functional sea areas of Qingdao coast, the Yellow Sea, China: a metabarcoding approach

• Published in: Journal of oceanology and limnology 2022-11, Vol.40 (6), p.2322-2342
• Main Authors: Wang, Zhaohui, Lei, Mingdan, Ji, Shuanghui, Xie, Changliang, Chen, Jiazhuo, Li, Weiguo, Jiang, Tao
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Algae; Algal blooms; Cluster analysis; Clustering; Coastal waters; Coastal zone; Coasts; Community structure; Deoxyribonucleic acid; Dinoflagellata; Dinoflagellates; DNA; DNA barcoding; Dormant Cells and Cysts; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Gene sequencing; Marine invertebrates; Microorganisms; Nucleotide sequence; Oceanography; Organic carbon; Organic matter; Organic phosphorus; Phosphorus; Phytoplankton; Resting stages; Sediment; Sediment samplers; Sediment samples; Sediments; Species; Total organic carbon
• ISSN: 2096-5508; 2523-3521
• DOI: 10.1007/s00343-021-1200-0

Surface sediment samples were collected in three different functional sea areas in Qingdao coast, East China, including the inner Jiaozhou Bay, the Laoshan Coast, and the Amphioxus Reserve area. Diversity and community structure of eukaryotic algae especially those of phytoplankton resting stages were assessed by metabarcoding V4 region of the 18S rDNA. Biogenic elements including total organic carbon (TOC), organic matter (OM), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), and biogenic silicon (BSi) were analyzed. A total of 1 496 eukaryotic operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were measured, including 207 algal OTUs, which contributed to 13.84% of the total OTUs. Ninety-eight species in 8 phyla, 24 classes of eukaryotic algae were detected. Among them, 47 species have been reported to form resting stages, and 12 species are firstly recorded in Chinese coastal waters. Dinoflagellates dominated in both DNA reads and OTU richness, which contributed to 73.02% and 61.35% of the eukaryotic algal sequences and OTU richness, respectively. DNA reads, OTU richness and alpha diversity indexes of eukaryotic algae were higher in the Laoshan Coast, and lower in Jiaozhou Bay. Eukaryotic algal community differed in the three sea areas, which was dominated by chrysophytes in Jiaozhou Bay, by dinoflagellates in the Laoshan Coast, and co-dominated by dinoflagellates and chrysophytes in the Amphioxus Reserve area. Clustering analysis showed that the Laoshan Coast and the Amphioxus Reserve area are clustered together, while Jiaozhou Bay is clustered separately. Thirty-six harmful algal bloom (HAB) species were detected, and 10 species have been reported to form blooms in Jiaozhou Bay and the Qingdao coast before. Some of these species occurred widely and dominantly in this study, suggesting high potential risk of HABs in the Qingdao coastal area.