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.