title: The neuroecology of dimethyl sulfide: a global-climate regulator turned marine infochemical.
abstract: Information transfer influences food-web dynamics in the marine environment, but infochemicals involved in these processes are only beginning to be understood. Dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) is produced by phytoplankton and other marine algae, and has been studied primarily in the context of sulfur cycling and regulation of global climate. My laboratory has been investigating DMSP and its breakdown product, dimethyl sulfide as infochemicals associated with trophic interactions in marine habitats, including sub-Antarctic and coral reef ecosystems. Using a neuroecological approach, our work has established that these biogenic sulfur compounds serve as critical signal molecules in marine systems and provides us with a more mechanistic understanding of how climate change may impact information transfer within marine food webs.
authors: Centre for Animal Behavior, Section of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. ganevitt@ucdavis.edu
authors: Gabrielle A
authors: GA
authors: Nevitt
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds / Q000502:physiology*; D057231:Climate Change; D057894:Coral Reefs; D003463:Cues; D000458:Cyanobacteria / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology; D004220:Disulfides / Q000737:chemistry*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D005399:Fishes / Q000502:physiology*; D020387:Food Chain; D008386:Marine Biology; D009812:Odorants; D055696:Olfactory Perception; D010839:Phytoplankton / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology; D011235:Predatory Behavior; D013452:Sulfonium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D014835:Volatilization
chemical_list: D004220:Disulfides; D013452:Sulfonium Compounds; C021181:dimethyl disulfide; C068078:dimethylpropiothetin