The effect of UV-B radiation on photosynthesis and respiration of phytoplankton, benthic macroalgae and seagrasses

✍ Scribed by A.W.D. Larkum; W.F. Wood

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1993
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 492 KB
• Volume: 36
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0166-8595
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00018071

✦ Synopsis

Several species of marine benthic algae, four species of phytoplankton and two species of seagrass have been subjected to ultraviolet B irradiation for varying lengths of time and the effects on respiration, photosynthesis and fuorescence rise kinetics studied. No effect on respiration was found. Photosynthesis was inhibited to a variable degree in all groups of plants after irradiation over periods of up to 1 h and variable fluorescence was also inhibited in a similar way. The most sensitive plants were phytoplankton and deep-water benthic algae. Intertidal benthic algae were the least sensitive to UV-B irradiation and this may be related to adaptation, through the accumulation of UV-B screening compounds, to high light/high UV-B levels. Inhibition of variable fluorescence (Fv) of the fluorescence rise curve was a fast and sensitive indicator of UV-B damage. Two plants studied, a brown alga and a seagrass, showed very poor recovery of F v over a period of 32 h.