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Photosynthetic kinetics determine the outcome of competition for dissolved inorganic carbon by freshwater microalgae: implications for acidified lakes

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Summary

Photosynthetic kinetics with respect to dissolved inorganic carbon were used to predict the outcome of competition for DIC between the green alga Selenastrum minutum and the cyanobacterium Synechococcus leopoliensis at pH 6.2, 7.5, and 10. Based on measured values of the maximum rate of photosynthesis, the half-saturation value of photosynthesis with respect to DIC (K 2/DIC1 ), and the DIC compensation point, it was predicted that S. leopoliensis would lower the steady-state DIC concentration below the DIC compensation point of S. minutum. This should result in competitive displacement of the green alga at a rate equivalent to the chemostat dilution rate. This prediction was validated by carrying out competition experiments over the range of pH. These results suggest that the low levels of DIC in air-equilibrated acidified lakes may be an important rate-limiting resource and hence affect phytoplankton community structure. Furthermore, the low levels of DIC in these systems may be below the DIC compensation point for some species, thereby precluding their growth at acid pH solely as a function of DIC limitation. The potential importance of DIC in shaping phytoplankton community structure in acidified systems is discussed.

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Abbreviations

μ:

growth rate

μmax :

maximum growth rate

K μ :

concentration of dissolved inorganic carbon required to maintain half-maximal rate of growth

K 2/DIC1 :

concentration of dissolved inorganic carbon required to maintain half-maximal photosynthesis

DIC:

dissolved inorganic carbon

P max :

maximum rate of photosynthesis

R * :

substrate concentration required for an organism to maintain a growth rate equal to the mortality rate

τ:

DIC compensation point (DIC) concentration where gross photosynthesis equals respiration

i.e.:

net photosynthesis equals zero

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Queen's University, K7L 3N6, Kingston, Ontario, Canada

    T. G. Williams & D. H. Turpin

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  1. T. G. Williams
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  2. D. H. Turpin
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Williams, T.G., Turpin, D.H. Photosynthetic kinetics determine the outcome of competition for dissolved inorganic carbon by freshwater microalgae: implications for acidified lakes. Oecologia 73, 307–311 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00377523

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00377523

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