Abstract
Chlorella fusca was the test species used in assays of two wastewaters, one characterized by a high concentration of free metal ions, and the other by high concentrations of free metal ions and chlorinated organic compounds. Fine structural damage in cells exposed for six days to the effluents was examined using an electron microscope. In the presence of organic toxicity, the affected cells displayed a characteristically large build-up of starch grains. At high metal concentrations, the chloroplasts were the only organelles altered. Within the chloroplast, there were disruptions of the thylakoidal membranes and enlargement of interthylakoidal spaces. Excess metals, detected by X-ray microanalysis in the polyphosphate (poly-P) bodies of cells where chloroplast damage was observed, were regarded as harmful. X-ray scanning of particulate material in effluent samples is proposed as a useful and low cost addition to surveillance programmes.
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Wong, S.L., Nakamoto, L. & Wainwright, J.F. Identification of toxic metals in affected algal cells in assays of wastewaters. J Appl Phycol 6, 405–414 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02182157
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02182157