High-density algal photobioreactors using light-emitting diodes

Lack of high-density algal photobioreactors (PBR) has been a limitation in exploiting the biotechnological potential of algae. Recent developments of highly efficient light-emitting diodes (LED using gallium aluminum arsenide chips) have made the development of a small LED-based PBR possible. We have calculated theoretical values of gas mass transfer requirements and light-intensity requirement to support high-density algal cultures for the 680 nm monochromatic red light from LED as a light source. A prototype PBR has been designed based on these calculations. A cell concentration of more than 2 x 10(9) cells/mL (more than 6.6% v%sol;v), cell doubling times as low as 12 h, and an oxygen production rate as high as 10 mmol oxygen/L culture/h were achieved using on-line ultrafiltration to periodically provide fresh medium. (c) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

CHARACTERIZATION OF TWO CHLORELLA VULGARIS (CHLOROPHYCEAE) STRAINS ISOLATED FROM WASTEWATER OXIDATION PONDS1

We report here on the characterization and isolation of two ecotypes of Chlorella vulgaris Beyerinck that coexist in wastewater reservoirs. One ecotype (C1) contains high amounts of chlorophyll b, is capable of autotrophic growth, and can utilize only a few organic solutes for growth. The second ecotype (C2) contains low amounts of chlorophyll b, requires vitamin B₁₂, and can support its growth with a broad range of organic compounds. Of the two ecotypes, the latter showed slower growth rates when light was the sole source of energy. Cells of C2-type Chlorella attained higher photosynthetic activities than C1-type cells at saturating irradiances. However, their low chlorophyll b content and lower light utilization efficiency suggest that C2-type Chlorella contains relatively low amounts of light-harvesting antennae, a disadvantage in severely light-limited ecosystems like wastewater reservoirs. We hypothesize that the two Chlorella types coexist by adopting different lifestyles: C1-type cells rely largely on their photosynthetic potential for energy conservation and growth, whereas C2-type cells may exploit their heterotrophic properties for this purpose.     

Enhancement of extractable ethylene at light/dark transition in primary leaves of paclobutrazol-treated Phaseolus vulgaris seedlings

Paclobutrazol [(2RS,3RS)-1-(4-chlorophenyl)-4,4-dimethyl-2-(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)pentan-3-ol], a triazole growth retardant, increased the 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) level and resulted in reduced ethylene production, estimated as ethylene release in a closed system or by vacuum-extraction, in the primary leaves of Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv. Juliska seedlings exposed to light. At the light/dark transition, a definite enhancement of the endogenous ethylene level was observed by vacuum-extraction of primary leaves of treated plants and the ethylene deficiency of retardant-treated leaves ceased. The concentration of ACC after the light/dark transition followed the pattern for ethylene, and the increase in ACC content was paralleled by a decrease in malonyl-ACC.
It is concluded that the internal level of ethylene is not necessarily lower in the primary leaves of paclobutrazol-treated bean plants, but under special environmental conditions in vivo it may reach that of the control.     

Turgor-dependent unloading of assimilates from coats of developing legume seed. Assessment of the significance of the phenomenon in the whole plant

The in vivo significance of turgor-dependent unloading was evaluated by examining assimilate transport to and within intact developing seeds of Phaseolus vulgaris (cv. Redland Pioneer) and Vicia faba (cv. Coles Prolific). The osmotic potentials of the seed apoplast were low. As a result, the osmotic gradients to the seed coat symplast were relatively small (i.e. 0.1 to 0.3 MPa). Sap concentrations of sucrose and potassium in the seed apoplast and coat symplast accounted for some 45 to 60% of the osmotic potentials of these compartments. Estimated turnover times of potassium and sucrose in the seed apoplast of < 1 h were some 5 to 13 times faster than the respective turnover times in the coat symplast pools. The small osmotic gradient between the seed apoplast and coat symplast combined with the relatively rapid turnover of solutes in the apoplast pool, confers the potential for a small change in assimilate uptake by the cotyledons to be rapidly translated into an amplified shift in the cell turgor of the seed coat. Observed adjustments in the osmotic potentials of solutions infused between the coat and cotyledons of intact seed were consistent with the in vivo operation of turgor-dependent unloading of solutes from the coat. Homeostatic regulation of turgor-dependent unloading was indicated by the maintenance of apoplast osmotic potentials of intact seeds when assimilate balance was manipulated by partial defoliation or elevating pod temperature. In contrast, osmotic potentials of the coat symplast adjusted upward to new steady values over a 2 to 4 h period. The resultant downward shift in coat cell turgor could serve to integrate phloem import into the seed coat with the new rates of efflux to the seed apoplast. Circumstantial evidence for this linkage was suggested by the approximate coincidence of the turgor changes with those in stem levels of ³²P used to monitor phloem transport. The results obtained provide qualified support for the in vivo operation of a turgor homeostat mechanism. It is proposed that the homeostat functions to integrate assimilate demand by the cotyledons with efflux from and phloem import into the coats of developing legume seed.     

Turgor-dependent unloading of photosynthates from coats of developing seed of Phaseolus vulgaris and Vicia faba. Turgor homeostasis and set points

Key physiological characteristics of turgor-dependent efflux of photosynthates were examined using excised coats and cotyledons of developing Phaseolus vulgaris (cv. Redland Poineer) and Vicia faba (cv. Coles Prolific) seed during the linear phase of seed fill. Exposure to solutions of high osmotic potential inhibited net uptake of [¹⁴C]sucrose by cotyledons at developmental stages less than 60% of their final dry weight. The effect could not be fully reversed by transferring cotyledons to solutions set at lower osmotic potentials. The inhibition became apparent at osmotic potentials that were higher than those that caused stimulation of efflux from seed coats. Net [¹⁴C]sucrose uptake by cotyledons at more advanced stages of development was unaffected by external osmotic potential. Specified tissue layers were removed from seed coats by pretreatment with pectinase. Efflux studies with the pectinase-modified coats of Phaseolus and Vicia seed demonstrated that the cellular site of turgordependent efflux was the ground parenchyma and thin-wall parenchyma transfer cells, respectively. Coats subjected to long-term (hours) incubations, under hypo-osmotic conditions, exhibited the capacity for turgor regulation. This was mediated by turgor-dependent efflux of solutes. The solutes exchanged were of nutritional significance to the developing embryo. The relationship between efflux and coat turgor was characterised by a turgor-independent phase at low turgors. Once turgor exceeded a minimal value (set point), efflux increased in proportion to the magnitude of the turgor deviation (error signal) from the set point. For coats of sink-limited seed of Vicia and Phaseolus, efflux exhibited apparent saturation at turgors above 0.25 and 0.5 MPa respectively. The putative turgor set point and slope of the turgor-dependent component of efflux varied with seed development, the prevailing source/sink ratio and genetic differences in seed growth rate. The nature of these kinetic variations was compatible with the competitive ability of the seed. A turgor homeostat model is proposed that incorporates the observed functional attributes of turgor-dependent efflux. Operationally, the model provides a mechanistic basis for the integration of assimilate demand by the cotyledons with assimilate import into and unloading from the seed coat.     

Calvin cycle genes in Nitrobacter vulgaris T3

Abstract The genes encoding the Calvin cycle enzymes of Nitrobacter vulgaris T3 are found as two separate clusters on the chromosome. One cluster contains the genes for the large and small subunits of ribulose-1,5-biphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, and one encoding a regulatory protein of the LysR family. The other cluster contains the genes for fructose-1,6-/sedoheptulose-1,7-bisphosphatase, phosphoribulokinase, and fructose-1,6-/sedoheptulose-1,7-biphosphate aldolase. With the exception of the LysR-like gene, the genes in each cluster are apparently transcribed in the same direction. The deduced amino acid sequence of both the large and small subunits of RuBisCO are most similar (84–86%) to those of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans and Chromatium vinosum . The deduced sequences of phosphoribulokinase and fructose/sedoheptulose bisphosphatase are 67–73 aand 44–46% similar to those reported for other autotrophic bacteria, respectively.     

Disturbed nitrogen metabolism associated with the hyperhydric status of fully habituated callus of sugarbeet

The content of polyamines and proline was much lower in a normal (N) callus of Beta vulgaris L. than in a fully habituated hyperhydric (H) callus. The H callus also contained more glutamate and had a higher glutamate dehydrogenase activity. The excess of glutamate, in this chlorophyll-deficient callus, was linked to accumulation of proline and polyamines. Experiments with α-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) and α-difluoromethylarginine (DFMA) showed that both ornithine decarboxylase and arginine decarboxylase participated in the synthesis of polyamines (especially spermidine and putrescine) and removal of ammonia. It is hypothesized that the H callus was subjected to ammonia stress from the start of the culture. Experiments with gabaculine, an inhibitor of ornithine aminotransferase, showed that this enzyme linked proline degradation to polyamine synthesis through the production of ornithine. This disturbed nitrogen metabolism appeared to be characteristic of the fully habituated callus and might explain the low growth of this hyperhydric tissue.     

Chromium-induced inhibition of ethylene evolution in bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) leaves

The influence of chromium concentration on ethylene production in bean plants ( Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv. Contender) was investigated. A Cr ion-induced inhibition of ethylene synthesis from endogenous 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) was observed within both leaf discs floated on 2 m M CrO²⁻₄ or Cr³⁺ and leaf discs from plants cultured in nutrient solutions containing 10, 20 or 40 μ M CrO²⁻₄. However, Cr ions supplied either to plants with the nutrient solution or to discs with the incubation medium rather increased the conversion of exogenous ACC to ethylene. Primary leaves of plants exposed to CrO²⁻₄-containing nutrient solutions showed a statistically insignificant decrease of ACC-synthase activity. In the trifoliolate leaves of plants exposed to 10 μ M CrO²⁻₄, in which a significant decrease of ethylene production from endogenous ACC was observed, a substantial increase of ACC synthase was found. These results indicate that Cr ion-induced inhibition of ethylene production is not due to a breakdown of membrane integrity, which is necessary for ethylene forming enzyme activity, but caused by metabolic alterations leading to decreased ACC availability. Chromium ions may act by inhibiting ACC synthase activity or by diverting a metabolic step prior to the ACC synthase catalyzed reaction.