Stable isotopes of fatty acids: current and future perspectives for advancing trophic ecology.

ABSTRACT: To understand consumer dietary requirements and resource use across ecosystems, researchers have employed a variety of methods, including bulk stable isotope and fatty acid composition analyses. Compound-specific stable isotope analysis (CSIA) of fatty acids combines both of these tools into an even more powerful method with the capacity to broaden our understanding of food web ecology and nutritional dynamics. Here, we provide an overview of the potential that CSIA studies hold and their constraints. We first review the use of fatty acid CSIA in ecology at the natural abundance level as well as enriched physiological tracers, and highlight the unique insights that CSIA of fatty acids can provide. Next, we evaluate methodological best practices when generating and interpreting CSIA data. W

SUBMITTER: Twining CW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7333957 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature