Abstract
Gelidium sesquipedale, the most important raw material for the extraction of Spanish agar, was studied ecophysiologically. Plant material came from a stressed intertidal system of high temperatures and high photon fluences. The plants were photoresistant and showed saturation of photosynthesis near a PFD of 300 µmol m−2 s−1 and a compensation point under 100 µmol m−2 s−1. Temperature and irradiance have a synergistic effect on photosynthesis. Pigment concentration decreased with irradiance except in the case of carotenes. Carbon and nitrogen were maximal at maximal photosynthetic rates, and the C : N ratio increased with increasing irradiances together with increases in cell-wall polysaccharides.
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Torres, M., Niell, F.X. & Algarra, P. Photosynthesis of Gelidium sesquipedale: effects of temperature and light on pigment concentration, C/N ratio and cell-wall polysaccharides. Hydrobiologia 221, 77–82 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00028364
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00028364