Elisa Berdalet

Institute of Marine Sciences (Spanish National Research Council) · Marine Biology and Oceanography

Ecological theory and empirical research show that both direct lethal effects and indirect non-lethal effects can structure the composition of communities. While the direct effects of grazers on marine phytoplankton communities are well studied, their indirect effects are still poorly understood. Direct and indirect effects are inherently difficult...

Sea spray aerosols (SSA) greatly affect the climate system by scattering solar radiation and acting as seeds for cloud droplet formation. The ecosystems in the Arctic Ocean are rapidly changing due to global warming, and the effects these changes have on the generation of SSA, and thereby clouds and fog formation in this region, are unknown. During...

The Mediterranean Sea is a region threatened by fast environmental changes and high coastal human impacts. Over the last decade, recurrent blooms of the harmful dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata have been recorded in many Mediterranean beaches. Here we investigate whether the spatial-temporal distribution of this microalga and the frequency of it...

RheFFFO * Working Group *Rheology, nano/microFluidics, bioFouling and bioFoam in the Ocean and other natural waters Dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the ocean represents about 662 billion tons of C, 200 times more than the living biomass. It is produced mainly by microbial primary production. The largest fraction of this DOM is old (>weeks to mon...

Genes control polymer dynamics and rheological properties that modulate fluxes of matter and energy in the ocean. e-rheology is environmental rheology e-rheology controls climate through ocean-air exchange of gas (including CO 2), heat, water and aerosols. Climate controls e-rheology (genomes > microbes > polymers and changing physical input proces...

As offshore wind energy expands in Europe, maritime planners increasingly need to consider the potential effects of these activities on the different types of marine protected areas (MPAs), including Natura 2000 sites. The aim of this article is to critically review the initial development of offshore wind energy inside and/or in the vicinity of Me...

Globally, there are 3 400 to 4 000 described species of marine microalgae but only 1 to 2 percent are considered to be harmful. Harmful algal blooms (HABs) have significant impacts on food safety and security through contamination or mass mortalities of aquatic organisms. The impacts and mass mortalities of marine species caused by harmful algae ar...

This study aimed to improve the understanding of the nutrient modulation of Ostreopsis cf. ovata toxin content. During the 2018 natural bloom in the NW Mediterranean, the total toxin content (up to ca. 57.6 ± 7.0 pg toxin cell−1) varied markedly. The highest values often coincided with elevated O. cf. ovata cell abundance and with low inorganic nut...

Analogues of palytoxin (PLTX), one of the most potent marine biotoxins, are produced by some species of the marine dinoflagellates of the genus Ostreopsis. The proliferation of these species in different coastal zones represents a potential threat of seafood poisoning in humans because the produced toxins can be transferred through marine food webs...

Oceans and Human Health (Second Edition) Opportunities and Impacts 2023, Pages 289-314 Oceans and Human Health Chapter 11 - Harmful algal blooms cause ocean illnesses affecting human health Elisa Berdalet, Mireille Chinain, Barbara Kirkpatrick, Patricia A. Tester Cite https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-95227-9.00020-8 Get rights and content Abstr...

Collecting methods generally used to determine cell abundances of toxic benthic dinoflagellates (BHAB) use cells dislodged from either macrophytes or artificial substrates. This article compares the advantages of the macrophyte and artificial substrate methods and discusses which method is more appropriate for use in monitoring programs that focus...

This paper summarizes the research conducted by the partners of the EU co-funded CoCliME project to ascertain the ecological, human health and economic impacts of Ostreopsis (mainly O. cf. ovata) blooms in the NW Mediterranean coasts of France, Monaco and Spain. This knowledge is necessary to design strategies to prevent, mitigate and, if necessary...

This chapter provides the first overview of the disruptive impacts of HABs on the blue economy, with a particular focus on the application of science and technology in their management and mitigation. We present case studies of HABs in five different locations as examples of their effects on different sectors of the blue economy. We also review the...

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are a signifi­cant global environmental management challenge, especially with respect to micro­algae that produce dangerous natural toxins. Examples of HAB toxin diseases with major global health impact include: ciguatera poi­soning, paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP), diarrhetic shell...

While phytoplankton has been shown to influence climate in diverse ways, this review treats just two aspects: reduction of sea-air fluxes, and increase in ocean foam coverage. Plankton and neuston algae produce dissolved organic matter (DOM), which tends to concentrate in the sea-surface microlayer (SML). Fluxes of matter and energy exchange across...

Ciguatera poisoning (CP) is a long-neglected foodborne disease affecting tropical regions of the Pacific and Indian Oceans and the Caribbean Sea. CP was raised by the Pacific Nations at the 32 nd Session of the FAO Committee on Fisheries in 2016. In 2017, it was an agenda item at the 11 th Session of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods. Th...

The Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) has experienced significant changes in seawater temperature over the past 50 years. This warming affects seawater and sea ice microbial cycling of organic matter, where viral features could play a crucial role in sympagic sea ice melting environments. However, there is a lack of information about the sea ice vi...

Sea spray aerosol (SSA) formation plays a major role in the climate system. The Antarctic Peninsula (AP) is affected by the greatest warming occurring in the Southern Ocean; changes in cryospheric and biological processes are being observed. Whilst there is some evidence that organic material produced by ice algae and/or phytoplankton in the high A...

Oceans, lakes and sewage treatment plants all contain water suspending a biota dominated by bacteria and the organic matter (OM) they secrete following expression of their genes. This OM regulates electrical layers at cell and molecule surfaces as well as rheological properties in the inter-cellular medium. OM also affects processes such as adsorpt...

Within the Southern Ocean, the greatest warming is occurring on the Antarctic Peninsula (AP) where clear cryospheric and biological consequences are being observed. Antarctic coastal systems harbour a high diversity of marine and terrestrial ecosystems heavily influenced by Antarctic seaweeds (benthonic macroalgae) and bird colonies (mainly penguin...

While phytoplankton has been shown to influence climate in diverse ways, this review treats just two aspects: reduction of sea-air fluxes, and increase in ocean foam coverage. Plankton and neuston algae produce dissolved organic matter (DOM), which tends to concentrate in the sea-surface microlayer (SML). Fluxes of matter and energy exchange across...

Blooms of the toxic benthic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata can induce ecological and human health issues in certain temperate areas. In order to prevent these negative effects, long-term monitoring studies of O. cf. ovata blooms have been conducted in several impacted areas to have a comprehensive understanding of bloom dynamics and efficient...

The need for alternative energy systems like offshore wind power to move towards the Green Deal objectives is undeniable. However, it is also increasingly clear that biodiversity loss and climate change are interconnected issues that must be tackled in unison. In this paper we highlight that offshore wind farms (OWF) in the Mediterranean Sea (MS) p...

Plankton and neuston microbes produce organic matter (OM), which accumulates in the sea surface microlayer (SML). Fluxes of heat and momentum exchange across the sea-air interface, as do fluxes of matter, including greenhouse gases, aerosols, microbes (algae, bacteria sensu lato and viruses) and other substances. At least at calm to moderate windsp...

The Global Harmful Algal Blooms (GlobalHAB, www.global hab.info) Program is aimed at fostering international cooperative research directed toward improving the prediction of harmful algal bloom (HAB) events in aquatic ecosystems, and providing sound knowledge for policy- and decision-making to manage and mitigate HAB impacts in a changing planet. G...

This paper discusses the conceptual and methodological challenges to co-developing high-quality and transferable knowledge to understand and manage harmful algal bloom (HAB) risks as part of adaptation to changing aquatic ecosystems in Europe. Global HAB-climate change research efforts to date have focused on enhancing the credibility of scientific...

This is the Editorial introducing the Research Topic "Chemically mediated interactions between macrophytes and microbes" in "Frontiers in Marine Science".

Is it well-accepted that communication among organisms including land plants and aquatic macrophytes in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems is largely achieved using information-conveying chemicals or infochemicals which should be seen as a chemical language of life. Marine macrophytes and phytoplankton are dominant primary producers in marine ecosy...

Within the Southern Ocean, the greatest warming is occurring on the Antarctic Peninsula (AP) where clear cryospheric and biological consequences are being observed. Antarctic coastal systems harbour a high diversity of marine and terrestrial ecosystems heavily influenced by Antarctic seaweeds (benthic macroalgae) and bird colonies (mainly penguins)...

The ocean and the continent converge in a very narrow line that is, nonetheless, truly relevant to the health, leisure, and economy of our society. The Mediterranean coastline has undergone major changes over the last fifty years, which is evident in the alteration of its microalgae species. The proliferation of dinoflagellates is now common in mic...

Critical research is needed regarding harmful algal blooms threatening ecosystem and human health, especially through respiratory routes. Additional complexity comes from the poorly understood factors involved in the physical production of marine aerosols coupled with complex biogeochemical processes at ocean surfaces. Here-by using a marine aeroso...

Microalgae blooms are generally associated with bacterial secondary producers. They produce organic matter (OM), some of which associates with the sea surface microlayer (SML). OM in the SML below the actual surface reduces fluxes of energy, including heat and momentum, and substances, including greenhouse gases, aerosols, algae, bacteria and virus...

Exposure to harmful algal blooms (HABs) can lead to well recognised acute patterns of illness in humans. The objective of this scoping review was to use an established methodology and the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) reporting framework to map the evidence for associations between marine HABs and obser...

Involving and engaging stakeholders is crucial for studying and managing the complex interactions between marine ecosystems and human health and wellbeing. The Oceans and Human Health Chair was founded in the town of Roses (Catalonia, Spain, NW Mediterranean) in 2018, the fruit of a regional partnership between various stakeholders, and for the pur...

The genus Ostreopsis includes some species that produce high biomass blooms and/or synthesize toxic compounds that can be transferred through the marine food webs or aerosolized causing ecological, human health and socio-economic impacts. Ostreopsis species are increasing their biogeographic distribution from tropical to more temperate waters and c...

The integrated study of ocean health and human health is an emerging area of increasing global importance. Growing evidences demonstrate that the health of the ocean and the health of humans have always been and will continue to be, inextricably linked. Our actions toward the oceans will significantly influence the future of the whole planet and, i...

Climate Change and Harmful Benthic Microalgae Patricia A. Tester, R. Wayne Litaker and Elisa Berdalet Abstract Sea surface temperatures in the world’s oceans are projected to warm by 0.4-1.4°C by mid twenty-first century causing many tropical and sub-tropical harmful dinoflagellate genera like Gambierdiscus, Fukuyoa and Ostreopsis (benthic harmfu...

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food sector globally and protein provisioning from aquaculture now exceeds that from wild capture fisheries. There is clear potential for the further expansion of marine aquaculture (mariculture), but there are associated risks. Some naturally occurring algae can proliferate under certain environmental conditions,...

“Infochemicals” (information‐conveying chemicals) dominate much of the underwater communication in biological systems. They influence the movement and behavior of organisms, the ecological interactions between and across populations, and the trophic structure of marine food webs. However, relative to their terrestrial equivalents, the wider ecologi...

There is increasing concern that accelerating environmental change attributed to human-induced warming of the planet may substantially alter the patterns, distribution and intensity of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs). Changes in temperature, ocean acidification, precipitation, nutrient stress or availability, and the physical structure of the water col...

Changes in phytoplankton blooming are likely to change exopolymeric substances particularly near the air-ocean surface microlayer, thus changing air-sea fluxes of energy znd substances. Such changes in phytoplankton blooming may harm modelling and prediction of climate change, unless such changes are included in future climate models.

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) produce local impacts in nearly all freshwater and marine systems. They are a problem that occurs globally requiring an integrated and coordinated scientific understanding, leading to regional responses and solutions. Given that these natural phenomena will never be completely eliminated, an improved scientific understan...

Ostreopsis is a tropical dinoflagellate that produces the potent biotoxins, palytoxin and analogues. Ostreopsis species thrive in shallow waters as epiphyte, mainly embedded in a self-produced mucilage sheath covering macroalgae, corals or rocks. In tropical zones, Ostreopsis has been related to human seafood borne intoxications. Recent data indica...

Variation in the taxonomy, concentration and physiological state of blooming algae, and associated bacteria, produces variation in the chemical composition of organic matter (OM) in the surface microlayer (SML) of the ocean and other natural waters. Such chemical variation implies variation in the SML rheological properties, such as viscosity, elas...

The Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms (GEOHAB) Programme was established in 2001 under the sponsorship of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO and the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR). GEOHAB was the first international research programme focusing exclusively on harmful marine algae. Th...

The GEOHAB Core Research Project (CRP) Harmful Algal Blooms in Benthic Systems, launched in 2010, focused on toxic and noxious events associated with benthic microalgae, especially the genera Gambierdiscus and Ostreopsis. Both organisms, which produce mucus to attach to benthic substrates (macroalgae, corals, rocks, sand), seem to be expanding to t...

There is no doubt that there are more harmful algal bloom (HAB) events, occurring more often, in more places and lasting longer than in decades past. This volume synthesizes the research and activities that took place during the nearly two decades of the international programme on the Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms (GEOHAB)...

GlobalHAB, “Global Harmful Algal Blooms,” is a new scientific programme on harmful algal blooms (HABs) cosponsored by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO and the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR) that will operate for 10 years from 2016 to 2025. GlobalHAB builds on the solid foundation established by the for...

The complexity of the harmful algal bloom (HAB) problem, its causative factors, and the impacts HABs have on the environment are becoming well characterized. The benefits of collaborative, cooperative, and comparative studies on HABs are important in advancing the understanding of this phenomenon and to provide scientific guidance to managers. This...

This chapter synthesizes progress achieved in the understanding of the dynamics of harmful algal blooms (HABs) under the auspices of the GEOHAB Core Research Project HABs in Stratified Systems. A variety of aquatic environments are considered, where small-scale hydrographic features may be encountered in stratified water columns. A special emphasis...

This paper describes the adoption and validation of two innovative methods for the automated count of Ostreopsis spp. concentration in sea water: a molecular assay based on RT-qPCR and an opto-electronic device implementing automatic recognition algorithms. The proposed approaches were tested on samples coming from different locations along the Med...

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) - blooms that cause fish kills, contaminate seafood with toxins, or cause human or ecological health impacts and harm to local economies - are occurring more often, in more places and lasting longer than in past decades. This expansion is primarily the result of human activities, through increased nutrient inputs and var...

Ciguatera Fish Poisoning (CFP) is the most frequently reported seafood-toxin illness in the world. It causes substantial human health, social, and economic impacts. The illness produces a complex array of gastrointestinal, neurological and neuropsychological, and cardiovascular symptoms, which may last days, weeks, or months. This paper is a genera...

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are natural phenomena that result from the interplay of biological, chemical, physical, and sedimentary processes occurring at different temporal and spatial scales. This paper provides an integrated description of HAB dynamics occurring at the mesoscale (10–100 km, sensu Haury et al., 1978) in confined and semi-confined...

Shallow, well-illuminated coastal waters from tropical to temperate latitudes are attractive environments for humans. Beaches and coral reefs have provided lodging and food to coastal communities for centuries. Unfortunately, tropical regions traditionally have been threatened by outbreaks of the toxic benthic dinoflagellate Gambierdiscus, which is...

The specific ingrowth rates of different radium isotopes make them valuable tracers to distinguish processes occurring at different temporal scales. Here we demonstrate the use of the radium quartet (223Ra, 224Ra, 226Ra and 228Ra) to differentiate flows of submarine groundwater discharge and porewater exchange to a coastal embayment (Alfacs Bay, NW...

Mediterranean Benthic Harmful Algal Blooms represent a phenomenon of particular interest and harmful proliferations of Ostreopsis spp. are increasing. During the last years several toxicological studies have been performed to assess the toxicity of this genus, highlighting that O. cf. ovata is the most toxic species, at least in the Mediterranean a...

Blooms of the benthic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis have been related to sporadic acute respiratory symptoms and general malaise in people exposed to marine aerosols on some Mediterranean beaches. However, the direct link between recurrent Ostreopsis blooms and health problems has not been clearly established. In order to establish and elucidate the co...

Plankton ecology has been the object of intense research and progress in the last few decades. This has been partly due to technological advances that have facilitated the multidisciplinary and high-resolution sampling of ecosystems and improved experimentation and analytical methodologies, and to sophisticated modelling. In addition, exceptional r...

The frequency and geographic extension of microalgae and gelatinous zooplankton blooms seem to have been increasing worldwide over recent decades. In particular, the harmful dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata and the Schyphozoan jellyfish Aurelia sp. are two of the most frequent and long lasting species forming blooms in the Mediterranean Sea. A k...

Microalgal blooms are a natural part of