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Review
. 2014 Jun 23;6(6):1929-50.
doi: 10.3390/toxins6061929.

Oligopeptides as biomarkers of cyanobacterial subpopulations. Toward an understanding of their biological role

Ramsy Agha  1 , Antonio Quesada  2
Affiliations
Review

Oligopeptides as biomarkers of cyanobacterial subpopulations. Toward an understanding of their biological role

Ramsy Agha et al. Toxins (Basel). .

Abstract

Cyanobacterial oligopeptides comprise a wide range of bioactive and/or toxic compounds. While current research is strongly focused on exploring new oligopeptide variants and their bioactive properties, the biological role of these compounds remains elusive. Oligopeptides production abilities show a remarkably patchy distribution among conspecific strains. This observation has prompted alternative approaches to unveil their adaptive value, based on the use of cellular oligopeptide compositions as biomarkers of intraspecific subpopulations or chemotypes in freshwater cyanobacteria. Studies addressing the diversity, distribution, and dynamics of chemotypes in natural systems have provided important insights into the structure and ecology of cyanobacterial populations and the adaptive value of oligopeptides. This review presents an overview of the fundamentals of this emerging approach and its most relevant findings, and discusses our current understanding of the role of oligopeptides in the ecology of cyanobacteria.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Examples of chemical structures of the seven major oligopeptide classes after Welker and Von Döhren [26]. Bold lines stand for conserved substructures within oligopeptide class. Thin lines stand for variable parts of the molecules that give rise to the existence of multiple chemical congeners within oligopeptide classes.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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