Pvl. Rao et al., EFFECTS OF NUTRIENT MEDIA AND CULTURE DURATION ON GROWTH, MACROMOLECULAR-COMPOSITION AND TOXICITY IN BATCH CULTURES OF MICROCYSTIS-AERUGINOSA, Microbios, 86(347), 1996, pp. 95-104
The effects of media and culture duration on growth, macromolecular co
mposition and toxicity of the freshwater cyanobacterium Microcystis ae
ruginosa were evaluated. Four media (MA, CB, A(3)M(7) and BG-11) influ
enced growth in terms of cell numbers, chlorophyll a content and speci
fic growth rate. MA medium supported the best growth. The macromolecul
ar composition of cultured cells, viz total protein, carbohydrates, li
pids, DNA and RNA content, varied reaching a maximum at various growth
periods. The differences were significant due to the interaction of t
he culture medium and duration. Toxicity was compared in terms of mous
e units. The toxicity of cultured cells increased with the duration un
til week 4 and toxicity was highest in cells grown in MA medium.