Premium
COPPER TOXICITY TO SKELETONEMA COSTATUM (BACILLARIOPHYCEAE) 1, 2
Author(s) -
Morel N. M. L.,
Rueter J. C.,
Morel F. M. M.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
journal of phycology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.85
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1529-8817
pISSN - 0022-3646
DOI - 10.1111/j.1529-8817.1978.tb00629.x
Subject(s) - copper , silicic acid , biology , toxicity , copper toxicity , kinetics , precipitation , nuclear chemistry , environmental chemistry , botany , chemistry , materials science , metallurgy , physics , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics , meteorology
Copper toxicity to Skeletonema costatum (Grev.) Cleve has been studied in batch cultures of chemically defined culture media. The alga is relatively insensitive to cupric ion activity, demonstrating no effect on growth up to (Cu 2+ ) = 10 −8.5 M. Cultures inoculated from stationary phase stocks exhibit a prolongation of the lag phase with increasing copper concentrations near and above the point of precipitation of the copper. The toxicity of copper is a function of the silicic acid concentration in the medium. This effect is observed in a range of Si(OH) 4 concentrations (10 −5 M to 10 −4 M) above known values for the saturation of silicon uptake kinetics, thus suggesting an influence of copper on silicate metabolism.