Jj. Fritz, Carbon fixation and coccolith detachment in the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi in nitrate-limited cyclostats, MARINE BIOL, 133(3), 1999, pp. 509-518
This study addresses carbon fixation and coccolith production and detachmen
t in the cosmopolitan species Emiliania huxleyi (Lohmann) Hay et Mohler, un
der conditions of nitrate limitation and high light typical of surface wate
r in the ocean. Cells were grown under controlled growth conditions using n
itrate-limited cyclostat cultures at four growth rates between 0.2 and 0.7
d(-1) in 1995. Both photosynthesis and calcification rates increased with g
rowth rate. Coccolith dimensions remained constant at all cell growth rates
. Specific rates of coccolith detachment also increased linearly with cell-
specific growth rate at a ratio not significantly different from 1.00. Esti
mates of coccolith carbon content decreased with increasing cell growth rat
es.