Inhibition of phototaxis in Volvox aureus by natural and simulated solar ultraviolet light

Ultraviolet radiation, ozone depletion, and marine photosynthesis

Concerns about stratospheric ozone depletion have stimulated interest in the effects of UVB radiation (280-320 nm) on marine phytoplankton. Research has shown that phytoplankton photosynthesis can be severely inhibited by surface irradiance and that much of the effect is due to UV radiation. Quantitative generalization of these results requires a biological weighting function (BWF) to quantify UV exposure appropriately. Different methods have been employed to infer the general shape of the BWF for photoinhibition in natural phytoplankton, and recently, detailed BWFs have been determined for phytoplankton cultures and natural samples. Results show that although UVB photons are more damaging than UVA (320-400 nm), the greater fluxes of UVA in the ocean cause more UV inhibition. Models can be used to analyze the sensitivity of water column productivity to UVB and ozone depletion. Assumptions about linearity and time-dependence strongly influence the extrapolation of results. Laboratory measurements suggest that UV inhibition can reach a steady-state consistent with a balance between damage and recovery processes, leading to a non-linear relationship between weighted fluence rate and inhibition. More testing for natural phytoplankton is required, however. The relationship between photoinhibition of photosynthesis and decreases in growth rate is poorly understood, so long-term effects of ozone depletion are hard to predict. However, the wide variety of sensitivities between species suggests that some changes in species composition are likely. Predicted effects of ozone depletion on marine photosynthesis cannot be equated to changes in carbon flux between the atmosphere and ocean. Nonetheless, properly designed studies on the effects of UVB can help identify which physiological and ecological processes are most likely to dominate the responses of marine ecosystems to ozone depletion.

Delay of cell differentiation in Anabaena aequalis caused by UV-B radiation and the role of photoreactivation and excision repair

The effect of ultraviolet light on cell differentiation was studied in the cyanobacterium Anabaena aequalis. Exposure of cells to UV-B wavelengths (280-320 nm) significantly delayed the differentiation of vegetative cells into heterocysts and akinetes at doses up to 56 kJ m-2. Heterocyst differentiation was essentially stopped at all exposure levels when photoreactivation was prevented, even when excision repair was available to the cells. Photoreactivated samples produced heterocysts at doses through 28 kJ m-2, after which differentiation dropped steeply to near zero levels. Some recovery of differentiation was evident at higher doses but at levels much below that of controls. Akinete differentiation was only slightly delayed by the exposures when cells were photoreactivated. Samples then showed rapid differentiation with the numbers of akinetes significantly greater than controls. Cells that did not receive photoreactivating light showed a greater initial delay in differentiation but 2 weeks after the exposures had recovered to control levels. Caffeine had more effect on the differentiation of akinetes than heterocysts. Inhibition of excision repair greatly reduced differentiation in photoreactivated samples and essentially eliminated differentiation in the nonphotoreactivated samples.