Variation in growth rate,carbon assimilation,and photosynthetic efficiency in response to nitrogen source and concentration in phytoplankton isolated from upper San Francisco Bay |
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| Authors: | Gry Mine Berg Sara Driscoll Kendra Hayashi Melissa Ross Raphael Kudela |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Applied Marine Sciences, Santa Cruz, California, USA;2. Ocean Sciences Department, University of California, Santa Cruz, California, USA |
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| Abstract: | Six species of phytoplankton recently isolated from upper San Francisco Bay were tested for their sensitivity to growth inhibition by ammonium (NH4+), and for differences in growth rates according to inorganic nitrogen (N) growth source. The quantum yield of photosystem II (Fv/Fm) was a sensitive indicator of NH4+ toxicity, manifested by a suppression of Fv/Fm in a dose‐dependent manner. Two chlorophytes were the least sensitive to NH4+ inhibition, at concentrations of >3,000 μmoles NH4+ · L?1, followed by two estuarine diatoms that were sensitive at concentrations >1,000 μmoles NH4+ · L?1, followed lastly by two freshwater diatoms that were sensitive at concentrations between 200 and 500 μmoles NH4+ · L?1. At non‐inhibiting concentrations of NH4+, the freshwater diatom species grew fastest, followed by the estuarine diatoms, while the chlorophytes grew slowest. Variations in growth rates with N source did not follow taxonomic divisions. Of the two chlorophytes, one grew significantly faster on nitrate (NO3?), whereas the other grew significantly faster on NH4+. All four diatoms tested grew faster on NH4+ compared with NO3?. We showed that in cases where growth rates were faster on NH4+ than they were on NO3?, the difference was not larger for chlorophytes compared with diatoms. This holds true for comparisons across a number of culture investigations suggesting that diatoms as a group will not be at a competitive disadvantage under natural conditions when NH4+ dominates the total N pool and they will also not have a growth advantage when NO3? is dominant, as long as N concentrations are sufficient. |
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| Keywords: | ammonium tolerance carbon assimilation chlorophytes diatoms growth rates nitrogen source PSII efficiency upper San Francisco Bay |
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