Biodiversity and chemical diversity in Antarctica: new species and new natural products

• Main Authors: Ávila, C., Taboada, Sergi, Núñez-Pons, L., Cristobo, Javier, Figuerola, L., Angulo-Preckler, C., Moles, J., Bas, M., Riesgo, Ana
• Other Authors: Instituto Español de Oceanografía
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: Medio Marino; Centro Oceanográfico de Gijón; Biodiversity; Antarctic; Natural Products; Antarc*; Antarctica; antartic*
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10508/2666; http://hdl.handle.net/10261/319247

Antarctica is a still unexplored area in many senses, among which biological diversity and even more, chemical diversity. Over the last years our research group has been studying marine benthic ecosystems in different Antarctic areas in the frame of the projects ECOQUIM and ACTIQUIM. These studies have produced many interesting discoveries regarding both new species to science, as well as new natural products. We have been trying to unravel the complex interactions network existing between marine benthic organisms in these cold and hardly accessible ecosystems. We present here a review of our recent results, considering the biology and ecology of these organisms and the chemistry laying behind their interactions. As a summary, we may say that these ecosystems are as complex as any other similar environment in the planet, although many questions remain to be answered yet. Instituto Español de Oceanografía