Premium
MICROSPECTROPHOTOMETRY AS A METHOD TO IDENTIFY KLEPTOPLASTIDS IN THE NAKED FRESHWATER DINOFLAGELLATE GYMNODINIUM ACIDOTUM 1
Author(s) -
Barsanti Laura,
Evangelista Valtere,
Passarelli Vincenzo,
Frassanito Anna Maria,
Coltelli Primo,
Gualtieri Paolo
Publication year - 2009
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.1529-8817.2009.00751.x
Subject(s) - dinoflagellate , biology , gymnodinium , botany , chloroplast , phycocyanin , algae , pigment , photosynthetic pigment , zoology , cyanobacteria , ecology , chlorophyll a , phytoplankton , biochemistry , bacteria , paleontology , chemistry , organic chemistry , nutrient , gene
A relatively small number of freshwater dinoflagellates are involved in symbiotic association with cryptophytes. The chloroplasts of the cryptophytes are retained by the dinoflagellate and give it the characteristic phycobilin pigmentation, either phycoerythrin or phycocyanin. The pigment characterization of the retained chloroplasts can give precise and accurate information about the type of cryptophyte preyed upon by the dinoflagellate. For this purpose, we performed microspectrophotometric evaluation of the pigments of Gymnodinium acidotum Nygaard and three different cryptophytes present in samples collected from a tributary of the river Arno, in Tuscany (Italy). The comparison of the different spectroscopic data allowed us to discriminate effectively among the cryptophytes preyed upon by the dinoflagellate.