Little is known about the role of chemotaxis in the location and attachment of chytrid zoospores to potential diatom hosts. Hypothesizing that environmental stress parameters affect parasite-host recognition, four chytrid-diatom tandem cultures (Chytridium sp./Navicula sp., Rhizophydium type I/Nitzschia sp., Rhizophydium type IIa/Rhizosolenia sp., Rhizophydium type IIb/Chaetoceros sp.) were used to test the chemotaxis of chytrid zoospores and the presence of potential defense molecules in a non-contact-co-culturing approach. As potential triggers in the chemotaxis experiments, standards of eight carbohydrates, six amino acids, five fatty acids, and three compounds known as compatible solutes were used in individual and mixed solutions, respectively. In all tested cases, the whole-cell extracts of the light-stressed (continuous light exposure combined with 6 h UV radiation) hosts attracted the highest numbers of zoospores (86%), followed by the combined carbohydrate standard solution (76%), while all other compounds acted as weak triggers only. The results of the phytochemical screening, using biomass and supernatant extracts of susceptible and resistant host-diatom cultures, indicated in most of the tested extracts the presence of polyunsaturated fatty acids, phenols, and aldehydes, whereas the bioactivity screenings showed that the zoospores of the chytrid parasites were only significantly affected by the ethanolic supernatant extract of the resistant hosts.
Female lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus) are a primary target of commercial fishery for their roe, a substitute for caviar. The remaining carcasses are underutilized rest raw material. The pre-treatment and acid extraction conditions of collagen from lumpfish skins were optimized. Full factorial design was used to optimize the alkali pre-treatment conditions with NaOH. The optimal conditions were X1 = 0.1 M (NaOH concentration), X2 = 6 h (NaOH treatment time), X3 = 4 °C (treatment temperature) and X4 = 1:5 (w/v, solid to liquid ratio). Optimized conditions for collagen extraction with acetic acid were investigated using a Box–Behnken design. The result suggested a concentration of 0.9 M acetic acid, treatment temperature of 21 °C, a treatment time of 36 h in a total of 2 volumes of acid. Combined optimized effects resulted in a collagen yield of 45% (DW/DW) with high purity (>90%) and a high hydroxyproline content (7.9%). A scale-up experiment (starting with 45 kg) showed that the yield was somewhat lower (18–25%). Enzyme hydrolysis of skin after acetic acid extraction added another 23% (DW/DW) to the yield and enzyme hydrolysis of precleaned skins resulted in 60% (DW/DW).