Proliferation of microcystin (MC) producing Microcystis aeruginosa in brackish waters has been described in several locations and represents a new concern for public and environmental health. While the impact of a sudden salinity increase on M. aeruginosa physiology has been studied, less is known about the mechanisms involved in salt tolerance after acclimation. This study aims to compare the physiological responses of two strains of M. aeruginosa (PCC 7820 and PCC 7806), isolated from contrasted environments, to increasing salinities. After acclimation, growth, MC production and metabolomic analyses were conducted. For both strains, salinity decreased the biovolume, the growth and MC production rates and induced the accumulation of polyunsaturated lipids identified as monogalactosyldiacylglycerol. The distinct salt tolerance (7.5 and 16.9) obtained between the freshwater (PCC 7820) and the brackish water (PCC 7806) strains suggested different strategies to cope with the osmotic pressure, as revealed by targeted and untargeted metabolomic analyses. Accumulation of trehalose as the main compatible solute was obtained in the freshwater strain while sucrose was mainly accumulated in the brackish one. Moreover, distinct levels of glycine betaine and proline accumulation were noted. Altogether, metabolomic analysis illustrated a strain-specific response to salt tolerance, involving compatible solutes production. Importance Blooms of Microcystis aeruginosa and production of microcystins is one of the major issue in eutrophic freshwater bodies. Recently, an increasing number of proliferations of M. aeruginosa in brackish water has been documented. Occurrence of both M. aeruginosa and microcystins in coastal areas represents a new threat for human and environmental health. In order to better describe the mechanisms involved in Microcystis proliferation in brackish water, this study used two M. aeruginosa strains isolated from fresh and brackish waters. High salinity reduced the growth rate and microcystin production rate of M. aeruginosa. In order to cope with higher salinities, the strains accumulated different cyanobacterial compatible solutes, as well as unsaturated lipids, explaining their distinct salt tolerance.

The transfer of Microcystis aeruginosa from freshwater to estuaries has been described worldwide and salinity is reported as the main factor controlling the expansion of M. aeruginosa to coastal environments. Analyzing the expression levels of targeted genes and employing both targeted and non-targeted metabolomic approaches, this study investigated the effect of a sudden salt increase on the physiological and metabolic responses of two toxic M. aeruginosa strains separately isolated from fresh and brackish waters, respectively, PCC 7820 and 7806. Supported by differences in gene expressions and metabolic profiles, salt tolerance was found to be strain specific. An increase in salinity decreased the growth of M. aeruginosa with a lesser impact on the brackish strain. The production of intracellular microcystin variants in response to salt stress correlated well to the growth rate for both strains. Furthermore, the release of microcystins into the surrounding medium only occurred at the highest salinity treatment when cell lysis occurred. This study suggests that the physiological responses of M. aeruginosa involve the accumulation of common metabolites but that the intraspecific salt tolerance is based on the accumulation of specific metabolites. While one of these was determined to be sucrose, many others remain to be identified. Taken together, these results provide evidence that M. aeruginosa is relatively salt tolerant in the mesohaline zone and microcystin (MC) release only occurs when the capacity of the cells to deal with salt increase is exceeded.