Marine Biotechnology - Biotechnology elective course

1. MARINE BIOTECHNOLOGY
Elective for B.Tech.Biotechnology course
(Anna University)
UNIT – 01
An intro on marine eco-system
Can request hand-outs, lecture notes and ppts to
course coordinator,
Dr.Shaleesha A.Stanley
shaleesha.stanley@gmail.com

2. Introduction
An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem
located in a body of water
The two main types of aquatic ecosystems
are marine ecosystems and
freshwater ecosystems.

3. Marine ECOSYSTEM
 Marine ecosystems cover approximately 71% of the
Earth's surface and contain approximately 97% of the
planet's water
 They are distinguished from freshwater ecosystems by
the presence of dissolved SALTS, in the water
 Approximately 85% of the dissolved materials in
seawater are sodium and chlorine
 Seawater has an average salinity of 35
parts per thousand (ppt) of water.
 Actual salinity varies among different marine
ecosystems

4. Marine ecosystems - ecosystems
 Marine ecosystems can be divided into the
following zones:
 oceanic (the relatively shallow part of the ocean
that lies over the continental shelf);
 profundal (bottom or deep water);
 benthic (bottom substrates);
 intertidal (the area between high and low tides);
estuaries; salt marshes; coral reefs; and
 hydrothermal vents (where chemosynthetic
sulfur bacteria form the food base).

5. Freshwater ecosystems
 Freshwater ecosystems cover 0.80% of the Earth's
surface and inhabit 0.009% of its total water.
 Freshwater ecosystems contain 41% of the world's
known fish species
 There are three basic types of freshwater ecosystems:
 Lentic: slow-moving water, including pools, ponds, and
lakes.
 Lotic: rapidly-moving water, for example streams and
rivers.
 Wetlands: areas where the soil is saturated or
inundated for at least part of the time

6. Lake ecosystems
 can be divided into zones: pelagic (open offshore
waters); profundal; littoral (nearshore shallow waters);
and riparian (the area of land bordering a body of
water)
 Two important subclasses of lakes are ponds, which
typically are small lakes that intergrade with wetlands,
and water reservoirs.
 Many lakes, or bays within them, gradually become
enriched by nutrients and fill in with organic sediments,
a process called eutrophication.
 Eutrophication is accelerated by human activity within
the water catchment area of the lake

7.  anadromous fish live in the ocean mostly, and breed in fresh
water
 catadromous fish live in fresh water, and breed in the ocean
 amphidromous fish move between fresh and salt water during
their life cycle, but not to breed
Ponds
 Specific type of freshwater ecosystems that are largely
based on the autotroph algae which provide the base
trophic level for all life in the area
 An autotroph, also called a producer, is an organism
that produces complex organic compounds from simple
inorganic molecules using energy from light (by
photosynthesis) or inorganic chemical reactions (
chemosynthesis).
 They are the producers in a food chain, such as plants
on land or algae in water.

8. Abiotic characteristics
An ecosystem is composed of biotic
communities and abiotic environmental
factors, which form a self-regulating and
self-sustaining
unit.
Abiotic
environmental
factors
of
aquatic
ecosystems include temperature, salinity,
and flow

9. Biotic components
 Biotic components are the living things that
shape an ecosystem.
 A biotic factor is any living component that
affects another organism, including animals
that consume the organism in question, and the
living food that the organism consumes.
 Biotic factors include human influence.

10. Biotic components are contrasted to
abiotic components, which are non-living
components
of
an
organism's
environment, such as temperature, light,
moisture, air currents, etc.

11. Biotic components usually include:
 Producers, i.e. autotrophs: e.g. plants; they
convert the energy (from the sun, or other
sources such as hydrothermal vents) into food.
 Consumers, i.e. heterotrophs: e.g. animals; they
depend upon producers for food.
 Decomposers, i.e. detritivores: e.g. fungi and
bacteria; they break down chemicals from
producers and consumers into simpler form
which can be reused.

12. autotroph
 An autotroph, also called a producer, is an organism
that produces complex organic compounds (such as
carbohydrates, fats, and proteins) from simple
inorganic molecules using energy from light (by
photosynthesis) or inorganic chemical reactions (
chemosynthesis).
 They are the producers in a food chain, such as plants
on land or algae in water.
 They are able to make their own food and can
fix carbon

13. autotroph
 Autotroph can be phototrophs or lithotrophs
(chemoautotrophs).
 Phototrophs use light as an energy source,
while lithotrophs oxidize inorganic compounds,
such as hydrogen sulfide, elemental sulfur,
ammonium and ferrous iron.
 Phototrophs and lithotrophs use a portion of the
ATP produced during photosynthesis or the
oxidation of inorganic compounds to reduce
NADP+ to NADPH in order to form organic
compounds

14. Phototrophs
Phototrophs are the organisms (usually
plants) that carry out photosynthesis to
acquire energy. They use the energy from
sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and
water into organic materials to be utilized
in cellular functions such as biosynthesis
and respiration.

16. Autotrophs

17. heterotroph
A heterotroph is an organism that cannot
fix carbon and uses organic carbon for
growth

18. Detritivores
 Detritivores, also known as detritus feeders or
saprophages, are heterotrophs that obtain nutrients by
consuming detritus (decomposing organic matter).[1] By
doing so, they contribute to decomposition and the
nutrient cycles.
 Fungi are the primary decomposers in most
environments, illustrated here Mycena interrupta. Only
fungi produce the enzymes necessary to decompose
lignin, a chemically complex substance found in wood.
 Detritivores are an important aspect of many
ecosystems. They can live on any soil with an organic
component, and even live in marine ecosystems where
they are termed interchangeably with bottom feeders.

19. Abiotic component
Abiotic environmental factors of aquatic
ecosystems include
temperature,
salinity, and
flow