- Alternative Alert System for Cyanobacterial Bloom, Using Phycocyanin as a Level Determinant
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Chi-Yong Ahn , Seung-Hyun Joung , Sook-Kyoung Yoon , Hee-Mock Oh
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J. Microbiol. 2007;45(2):98-104.
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DOI: https://doi.org/2527 [pii]
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 Abstract
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Chlorophyll a concentration and cyanobacterial cell density are regularly employed as dual criteria for determinations of the alert level for cyanobacterial bloom. However, chlorophyll a is not confined only to the cyanobacteria, but is found universally in eukaryotic algae. Furthermore, the determination of cyanobacterial cell counts is notoriously difficult, and is unduly dependent on individual variation and trained skill. A cyanobacteria-specific parameter other than the cell count or chlorophyll a concentration is, accordingly, required in order to improve the present cyanobacterial bloom alert system. Phycocyanin has been shown to exhibit a strong correlation with a variety of bloom-related factors. This may allow for the current alert system criteria to be replaced by a three-stage alert system based on phycocyanin concentrations of 0.1, 30, and 700 μg/L. This would also be advantageous in that it would become far more simple to conduct measurements without the need for expensive equipment, thereby enabling the monitoring of entire lakes more precisely and frequently. Thus, an alert system with superior predictive ability based on highthroughput phycocyanin measurements appears feasible.
- Simple Method for a Cell Count of the Colonial Cyanobacterium, Microcystis sp.
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Seung-Hyun Joung , Choong-Jae Kim , Chi-Yong Ahn , Kam-Yong Jang , Sung Min Boo , Hee-Mock Oh
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J. Microbiol. 2006;44(5):562-565.
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DOI: https://doi.org/2440 [pii]
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Abstract
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The cell counting of colonial Microcystis spp. is a rather difficult and error-prone proposition, as this genus forms irregularly-shaped and irregularly-sized colonies, which are packed with cells. Thus, in order to facilitate a cell count, four methods of dividing the colonies into single cells were compared, including vortexing, sonication, TiO2 treatment, and boiling. As a result, the boiling method was determined to generate the greatest number of single cells from a colony, and all colonies were found to have divided completely after only 6 min of treatment. Furthermore, no significant cell destruction, which might alter the actual cell density, was detected in conjunction with the boiling method (P = 0.158). In order to compute the cell number more simply, the relationship between the colony size and the cell number was determined, via the boiling method. The colony volume, rather than the area or diameter was correlated more closely with the cell number (r2 = 0.727), thereby suggesting that the cell numbers of colonial Microcystis sp. can also be estimated effectively from their volumes.
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