Growth inhibition of bloom-forming cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa by rice straw extract.

AIMS: To inhibit the growth of the bloom-forming cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa using a rice straw extract. METHODS AND RESULTS: The cell numbers of the algal strain M. aeruginosa UTEX 2388 significantly decreased after treatment with different concentrations (0.01, 0.1, 1 and 10 mg l(-1)) of a rice straw extract for an 8-day cultivation period. Among seven tested allelochemicals from rice straw, salicylic acid at 0.1 mg l(1) exhibited the highest allelopathic activity (26%) on day 8. A synergistic effect on algal growth inhibition was found when adding two or three phenolic compounds from the rice straw. CONCLUSIONS: The growth of M. aeruginosa was inhibited by rice straw extract concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 10 mg l(1). This activity was due to the synergistic effects of various phenolic compounds in the rice straw. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: The identification of rice straw as an effective material for the growth inhibition of M. aeruginosa implies it may have the potential to be used as an environment-friendly biomaterial for controlling the algal bloom of M. aeruginosa in eutrophic water.

Seasonal variation and indirect monitoring of microcystin concentrations in Daechung reservoir, Korea.

Physicochemical and biological water quality, including the microcystin concentration, was investigated from spring to autumn 1999 in the Daechung Reservoir, Korea. The dominant genus in the cyanobacterial blooming season was Microcystis. The microcystin concentration in particulate form increased dramatically from August up to a level of 200 ng liter(-1) in early October and thereafter tended to decrease. The microcystin concentration in dissolved form was about 28% of that of the particulate form. The microcystins detected using a protein phosphatase (PP) inhibition assay were highly correlated with those microcystins detected by a high-performance liquid chromatograph (r = 0.973; P < 0.01). Therefore, the effectiveness of a PP inhibition assay for microcystin detection in a high number of water samples was confirmed as easy, quick, and convenient. The microcystin concentration was highly correlated with the phytoplankton number (r = 0.650; P < 0.01) and chlorophyll-a concentration (r = 0.591; P < 0.01). When the microcystin concentration exceeded about 100 ng liter(-1), the ratio of particulate to dissolved total nitrogen (TN) or total phosphorus (TP) converged at a value of 0.6. Furthermore, the microcystin concentration was lower than 50 ng liter(-1) at a particulate N/P ratio below 8, whereas the microcystin concentration varied quite substantially from 50 to 240 ng liter(-1) at a particulate N/P ratio of >8. Therefore, it seems that the microcystin concentration in water can be estimated and indirectly monitored by analyzing the following: the phytoplankton number and chlorophyll-a concentration, the ratio of the particulate and the dissolved forms of N and P, and the particulate N/P ratio when the dominant genus is toxigenic Microcystis.

Variation of microcystin content of microcystis aeruginosa relative to medium N:P ratio and growth stage.

Changes in the microcystin content of Microcystis aeruginosa UTEX 2388 were investigated at several N:P ratios of the medium and various growth stages. Under the P-fixed condition, the microcystin content of the cells changed with different medium N:P ratios, with the highest at 2748 microg g-1 at a N:P ratio of 16 after incubation for 7 d. The microcystin content of M. aeruginosa exhibited a high correlation with the total N content regardless of an N-fixed or P-fixed culture. When the N:P ratio of the medium was fixed to 16 : 1, the microcystin content of M. aeruginosa at various growth stages was highest at 2191 microg g-1 after an incubation of 4 d and the chlorophyll-a content showed a similar tendency. There was a highly significant relationship between the microcystin content of M. aeruginosa and the chlorophyll-a concentration in the culture during the incubation. Accordingly, the microcystin content of M. aeruginosa during incubation can be easily estimated and monitored by measuring the in vivo fluorescence changes in the culture.

Microcystin production by Microcystis aeruginosa in a phosphorus-limited chemostat.

The production of microcystins (MC) from Microcystis aeruginosa UTEX 2388 was investigated in a P-limited continuous culture. MC (MC-LR, MC-RR, and MC-YR) from lyophilized M. aeruginosa were extracted with 5% acetic acid, purified by a Sep-Pak C(18) cartridge, and then analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography with a UV detector and Nucleosil C(18) reverse-phase column. The specific growth rate (mu) of M. aeruginosa was within the range of 0.1 to 0.8/day and was a function of the cellular P content under a P limitation. The N/P atomic ratio of steady-state cells in a P-limited medium varied from 24 to 15 with an increasing mu. The MC-LR and MC-RR contents on a dry weight basis were highest at mu of 0.1/day at 339 and 774 microg g(-1), respectively, while MC-YR was not detected. The MC content of M. aeruginosa was higher at a lower mu, whereas the MC-producing rate was linearly proportional to mu. The C fixation rate at an ambient irradiance (160 microeinsteins m(-2) s(-1)) increased with mu. The ratios of the MC-producing rate to the C fixation rate were higher at a lower mu. Accordingly, the growth of M. aeruginosa was reduced under a P limitation due to a low C fixation rate, whereas the MC content was higher. Consequently, increases in the MC content per dry weight along with the production of the more toxic form, MC-LR, were observed under more P-limited conditions.

Characterization of a biosurfactant, mannosylerythritol lipid produced from Candida sp. SY16.

One yeast strain, SY16, was selected as a potential producer of a biosurfactant, and identified as a Candida species. A biosurfactant produced from Candida sp. SY16 was purified and confirmed to be a glycolipid. This glycolipid-type biosurfactant lowered the surface tension of water to 29 dyne/cm at critical micelle concentration of 10 mg/l (1.5 x 10(-5) M), and the minimum interfacial tension was 0.1 dyne/cm against kerosene. Thin-layer and high-pressure liquid chromatography studies demonstrated that the glycolipid contained mannosylerythritol as a hydrophilic moiety. The hydrophilic sugar moiety of the biosurfactant was determined to be beta-D-mannopyranosyl-(1-->4)-O-meso-erythritol by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and fast atom bombardment mass-spectroscopy analyses. The hydrophobic moiety, fatty acids, of the biosurfactant was determined to be hexanoic, dodecanoic, tetradecanoic, and tetradecenoic acid by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy. The structure of the native biosurfactant was determined to be 6-O-acetyl-2,3-di-O-alkanoyl-beta-D-mannopyranosyl-(1-->4)-O-meso- erythritol by NMR analyses. We newly determined that an acetyl group was linked to the C-6 position of the D-mannose unit in the hydrophilic sugar moiety.

Isolation of a novel pentachlorophenol-degrading bacterium, Pseudomonas sp. Bu34.

A pentachlorophenol (PCP)-degrading bacterium was isolated from possible PCP-contaminated soil from Pusan, Korea and identified as a member of the genus Pseudomonas. It used PCP as its sole source of carbon and energy. This micro-organism was capable of degrading PCP more effectively, certified by the increase in cell density and the decrease in PCP substrate. Pseudomonas sp. Bu34 was able to degrade a much higher concentration of PCP (4000 mg l-1) than any previously reported PCP-degrading bacteria and fungi and to grow in mineral salts solution containing one of a variety of chlorophenols. In non-acclimated strain Bu34, the cell number decreased from 87 to 99.9% in 75-4000 mg l-1 PCP at 24 h. In the acclimated strain the PCP toxic effect did not appear with 75 mg l-1 PCP treatment, but 1000-4000 mg l-1 PCP decreased the cell number of strain Bu34 by 25% to 24 h and then the cell number slightly increased at 48 h. Therefore, it suggested that the maximum resistance of acclimated strain Bu34 to PCP was 4000 mg l-1 PCP. We suggest that strain Bu34 could be used as a micro-organism for the bioremediation of highly PCP-contaminated soils, water or wood products.

Bioflocculant produced by Aspergillus sp. JS-42.

A bioflocculant from a fungus, Aspergillus sp. JS-42, was purified by precipitations with acetone and cetylpyridinium chloride. The flocculating activity was not significantly affected by pH from 3 to 8, but was stimulated by the addition of CaCl2, and was effective only when the reaction mixture contained an adequate amount of flocculant. The flocculant could efficiently flocculate all tested solids suspended in aqueous solution, including various microorganisms, organic acids, and inorganic materials.