Quantitative and qualitative evaluation of phytoplankton communities by trichromatic chlorophyll fluorescence excitation with special focus on cyanobacteria.

We present results that were obtained with a newly developed fluorometer, the 'PhytoSensor'. They are based on multi-wavelength excitation of chlorophyll fluorescence to detect the phytoplankton biomass and to identify main taxons (among cyanobacteria, green and brown microalgae). A method to evaluate the photosynthetic potential of the phytoplankton was established. Attention was focused on the measurement of the cyanobacterial biomass. A modelling to distinguish between the two spectral groups (blue and red) of cyanobacteria as a function of their pigments and physiological status is proposed. The main innovation of the device results in the recording of the fluorescence induction kinetics of the phytoplankton to confirm and refine the evaluation of the taxonomic composition. The PhytoSensor abilities were compared with pigment analysis, commercial fluorometers, particle and microscopic counting and identification. The PhytoSensor has been used with success to monitor the dynamics of phytoplankton in drinking-water supply reservoirs in Southeast Asia.

Imaging early steps of human T cell activation by antigen-presenting cells.

In this work the Ca2+ response and the morphological changes elicited by Ag in human CD4+ T cells are described at the single cell level. The APC used to present the diphtheria toxoid Ag to a human diphtheria toxoid-specific T cell clone were murine L cell fibroblast transfectants expressing MHC class II molecules. The increase of the intracellular Ca2+ concentration, [Ca2+]i, which is one of the earliest steps of the response to TCR stimulation, was followed by fluorimetry with fura-2 on an imaging system. This response was a specific consequence of successful Ag presentation, because it only took place when fibroblasts expressed both class II MHC molecules and Ag. CD4 molecules were also involved in this intercellular interaction, because the Ca2+ response could be inhibited by preincubating the T cells with an anti-CD4 antibody. The response induced by APC started after a delay of at least 6 min, after which large Ca2+ oscillations took place, with a pseudo period of 100 s at 35 degrees C. The frequency of these oscillations decreased with temperature. The oscillations became progressively more damped during the first 30 to 40 min of cell-to-cell interaction, after which they completely stopped; however, [Ca2+]i remained well above its resting level for more than 1 h after the contact. The Ca2+ oscillations were entirely dependent on Ca2+ influx because they immediately disappeared when external calcium was removed. Similar oscillations were observed when the cells were stimulated with an anti-CD3 antibody. After stimulation with APC, many T cells abandoned their spherical shape and tended to flatten and elongate. This aspect of the T cell response was not observed after stimulation with an anti-CD3 antibody. In the presence of cytochalasin B, the morphologic changes elicited by the APC were blocked, whereas the Ca2+ response was slightly enhanced. However, when T cells were loaded with the Ca2+ chelator BAPTA, both Ca2+ and morphologic changes were inhibited, suggesting that the Ca2+ response plays a permissive role for the morphologic changes.