A. V. Borodina, A. A. Soldatov - Qualitative composition of carotenoids and their seasonal dynamics in tissues of the bivalve Anadara kagoshimensis (Tokunaga, 1906)

BIOLOGIYA MORYA, 2016, Vol. 42, No. 2, pp. 142-152

Qualitative composition of carotenoids and their seasonal dynamics in tissues of the bivalve Anadara kagoshimensis (Tokunaga, 1906)

A.O. Kovalevsky Institute of Marine Biological Research, Russian Academy of Sciences, Sevastopol 299011

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A total of six carotenoids-β-carotene, pectenol A, pectenolone (trans- and cis-isomers), zeaxanthin, diatoxanthin, and alloxanthin—as well as esters of allo- and diatoxanthin have been detected in total carotenoid extracts from tissues of the bivalve Anadara kagoshimensis using the methods of thin-layer chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, UV-VIS spectroscopy, and characteristic reactions for identification of chemical groups. The major group (over 90% of the total carotenoids) comprises alloxanthin, pectenolone, and allo- and diatoxanthin esters. Tissues of A. kagoshimensis are typically characterized by cyclic variations in the level of carotenoids over the period from winter to summer, with maxima in February and June and a minimum in April. The largest contribution to the seasonal carotenoid dynamics is made by the major group of pigments (R² = 0.75-0.99), which depends on the pattern of succession of diatomic microalgae during the annual cycle. The pathways of metabolic transformation of the carotenoids in tissues of this bivalve are discussed.

Key words: carotenoids, bivalves, Anadara kagoshimensis, seasonal dynamics of carotenoids.