Data from: 5α-cyprinol sulfate, a bile salt from fish, induces diel vertical migration in Daphnia

Prey are under selection to minimize predation losses. In aquatic
environments many prey use chemical cues released by predators, which
initiate predator-avoidance. A prominent example of behavioural
predator-avoidance constitutes diel vertical migration (DVM) in the
freshwater microcrustacean Daphnia spp., which is induced by chemical cues
(kairomones) released by planktivorous fish. In a bioassay-guided approach
using liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry we isolated the
kairomone from fish incubation water and identified it as 5α-cyprinol
sulfate inducing DVM in Daphnia at picomolar concentrations. The role of
5α-cyprinol sulfate in lipid digestion in fish explains why from an
evolutionary perspective fish has not stopped releasing 5α-cyprinol
sulfate despite the disadvantages for the releaser. The identification of
the DVM-inducing kairomone enables investigating its spatial and temporal
distribution and the underlying molecular mechanism of its perception.
Furthermore, it allows to test if fish-mediated inducible defenses in
other aquatic invertebrates are triggered by the same compound.