Abstract
Cyanobacterial bloom elimination has become an urgent concern in aquatic environment protection. Allelopathic technology, however, is one of the potential effective approaches because of its exclusive and ecological safety protection. The potential application of chitosan fiber in the inhibition of Microcystis aeruginosa was explored for the first time. Results showed that the cell growth of M. aeruginosa was inhibited effectively by chitosan fibers. After 12 days of treatment, the inhibition rate (IR) of algal cells was above 78.9%; those of chlorophyll a and carotenoids in algal cells were 86.9% and 93.1%, respectively; those of phycocyanin, allophycocyanin and phycoerythrin in phycobiliproteins were all approximately 100%; those of soluble proteins and algal toxins were 88% and 100%, respectively; and those of superoxide dismutase and catalase activities were 68% and 74%, respectively. In addition, chitosan fiber effectively destroyed the structure of algal cells involved in the photosynthetic process, thereby destroying the metabolic activity of algal cells. This study provides a novel method utilizing a new allelopathic material.
Highlights
Cyanobacteria are the first photoautotrophic prokaryotes on the earth that performs photosynthesis [1]
Compared with the control group, the M. aeruginosa cell concentration in the chitosan fiber treatment group was significantly reduced on the 6th day of the experiment, and the inhibition rate (IR) reached 55%
Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was used for figure observation of the surface of Microcystis after chitosan fiber treatment
Summary
Cyanobacteria are the first photoautotrophic prokaryotes on the earth that performs photosynthesis [1]. After the breakout of cyanobacterial blooms, water transparency is substantially reduced, the dissolved oxygen in the water is consumed, and the pH of the water body is remarkably increased These drastic changes in the water environment will lead to the death of a large number of aquatic organisms, corrupted and odorous water quality, and destruction of the structure and diversity of the water ecosystem [2]. Chitosan fiber is the only kind of natural alkaline polysaccharide discovered far and can be widely used because of its non-toxicity to human, good biocompatibility, biodegradability, and broad-spectrum antibacterial properties. This material has received increased attention and was used for related research. The concentrations of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) activity and algal toxin release, were analyzed to reveal the mechanism of chitosan fiber inhibition of cyanobacteria
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