Easy and rapid quantification of lipid contents of marine dinoflagellates using the sulpho-phospho-vanillin method

Abstract

To develop an easy and rapid method of quantifying lipid contents of marine dinoflagellates, we quantified lipid contents of common dinoflagellate species using a colorimetric method based on the sulpho-phospho-vanillin reaction. In this method, the optical density measured using a spectrophotometer was significantly positively correlated with the known lipid content of a standard oil (Canola oil). When using this method, the lipid content of each of the dinoflagellates Alexandrium minutum, Prorocentrum micans, P minimum, and Lingulodinium polyedrum was also significantly positively correlated with the optical density and equivalent intensity of color. Thus, when comparing the color intensity or the optical density of a sample of a micro algal species with known color intensities or optical density, the lipid content of the target species could be rapidly quantified. Furthermore, the results of the sensitivity tests showed that only 1-3 x 10(5) cells of P. minimum and A. minutum, 10(4) cells of P. micans, and 10(3) cells of L. polyedrum (approximately 1-5 mL of dense cultures) were needed to determine the lipid content per cell. When the lipid content per cell of 9 dinoflagellates, a diatom, and a chlorophyte was analyzed using this method, the lipid content per cell of these microalgae, with the exception of the diatom, were significantly positively correlated with cell size, however, volume specific lipid content per cell was negatively correlated with cell size. Thus, this sulpho-phospho-vanillin method is an easy and rapid method of quantifying the lipid content of autotrophic, mixotrophic, and heterotrophic dinoflagellate species.